FISHERMANS MARK
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Mission Statement
For over 40 years, the mission of Fisherman’s Mark is to strengthen our community. With responsive programs and services that promote stability, health, and education, Fisherman’s Mark is an advocate for positive change in the lives of our neighbors and their families.
About This Cause
The MISSION of FISHERMAN’S MARK is to strengthen our community through the facilitation of innovative, responsive programs and services that promote stability, health and wellness. With a commitment to excellence in social services and education, and as an advocate for positive change, we build upon the strengths of this community and celebrate our common unity. Fisherman's Mark services are broad and comprehensive in nature, focused on identifying barriers to self-sufficiency, building client knowledge of available resources and advocating for individuals and families as they strive to live more stable, healthy lives. We assist those individuals and families in meeting basic needs (food pantry/ affordable child care); assist individuals/families to move out of crisis and avoid future crisis (case management/ information resource and referral); help families make ends meet (back to school supplies/holiday food and gift programs); and promote health and wellness (access to healthy food including fresh produce and nutrition education)., while they develop necessary skills to manage identified areas of need. All of our programs support low-income families, individuals with disabilities, the elderly and those with chronic mental health/substance abuse needs. We keep people living independently, and advocate for supportive services that are strengths based and promote dignity; building upon available resources, empowering clients as they navigate the complex, multi-dimensional needs that they face. Our goal is to assist anyone who presents with a need, through education and linkages to services, empowering the individual as they become more self-sufficient. We have 7 programs that may be incorporated into the individualized treatment plan including: •Food Pantry: Offering food, personal necessities, and nutrition education 5 days a week, including food for pet family members. •Community Outreach: Offering resources to all community members to increase awareness of services and broaden our scope. This includes new, innovative programs such as our Farmers, Families and Fisherman’s Mark (F3) farm stand and the Food for Thought - Mobile Pantry program. •Case Management: Intensive intervention for individuals in crisis and/or with chronic needs that require collaborative treatment planning. Teaching clients to set self-defined goals and develop skills to achieve their goals. •Information, Resource & Referral: Linking clients to resources promoting self-sufficiency. •Lambertville Academy: Year-round NAEYC accredited early learning center, with Preschool, School-Age and Summer Camp Programs. 25% of attendees receive NJ Voucher assistance. •Los Puentes: Advocacy program designed to meet the unique needs of the Latino community and bridge individuals to FM services as well as the community at large. •Volunteer Program: An opportunity for everyone to become involved by contributing their time and experience. Includes collaboratives with organizations such as Hunterdon County ARC, Rutgers/RWJ Medical School and the Hunterdon County court system. Geographically our clients come from all over, from as far as Philadelphia and Northern NJ but primarily from Mercer and Hunterdon counties in NJ as well as Bucks and Montgomery Counties in PA. Because of our location, in a small city surrounded by rural areas, we bring resources to individuals who may otherwise be cut off from support, which includes the small but significant local homeless population. 97% of our clients have earnings below 185% of the federal poverty level. 31% of our clients are African American, 46% are Non-Hispanic White, 18% are Hispanic, 1% Asian, and 4% Other. The Fisherman's Mark client base is primarily made up of seniors, the disabled, the local immigrant population and low-income families. However, in difficult economic times, we assist more and more individuals and families in acute crisis, when a parent loses their job, or suffers an injury, loses insurance or families become homeless. 70% of our Head of Households are females and 22% are over 60. We serve an extremely LGBT-enlightened area, but do not track client preferences. 12% of our clients only speak Spanish. At Fisherman’s Mark, we are dedicated to strengthening our community by empowering all of its members. Although we are a smaller social service agency within a small city, we are uniquely positioned between large urban areas. Fisherman’s Mark services are all tied to the goal of promoting self-sufficiency, and in doing so, we create an organizational culture that demands excellence in meeting the needs of our clients as they arise, through coordinated efforts and collaboration with diverse service organizations. Across programs we utilize the “Fisherman’s Mark Bridge to Self-Sufficiency” assessment as a dynamic tool, to help clients identify areas of focus, set goals and to measure outcomes. The data gathered through the Self Sufficiency assessment is invaluable in measuring the success of our services/programs, as well as identifying deficits in available resources in the community or areas where collaboratives need to be enhanced. Collaborative relationships are critical to our ability to maximize client services, while minimizing budget impact. We currently have expanded collaborative relationships with local human service organizations, local government and law enforcement to broaden our reach, address specific service gaps and better serve our clients through service coordination. These include, but are limited to, Somerset Treatment Services, SAFE of Hunterdon, NJ SNAP Education, NJ CEED, Hunterdon ARC, Twin Oaks, SERV, Rolling Harvest, YMCA Faithfully Fit Program, Rutgers/RWJ Medical School, Hunterdon Helpline, the Lambertville Free Public Library and the Hibernia Fire Dept. Formal collaborative agreements include on-site educational programs or services for our clients, for example on-site HIV Medical Case Management; Domestic Violence counseling; and regular nutrition education at our F3 Farm Stand. As client needs present, we continually add collaboratives to address identified areas not already in place. In addition, Fisherman’s Mark has a large volunteer program, and we often draw upon the resources available through our volunteers for services, including Career Counseling, Resume Writing, Job Coaching, Budgeting and Financial Management.