Hispanic Brotherhood of RVC gets thousands

The Hispanic Brotherhood of Rockville Centre is set to receive thousands of dollars in funding from the United Way of Long Island to help families in the area recovering from Hurricane Sandy.

The American Red Cross granted $1 million to the United Way of Long Island, which will be sub-granting money to the Hispanic Brotherhood, as well as Adelante of Suffolk County, Inc. and La Fuerza Unida, Inc.

“We’re thrilled with it,” said Marguerite Keller, the Co-Director of the Hispanic Brotherhood. “We’re going to be able to hire two disaster case managers and then have funding for expenses.”

The funding will be used to help the Hispanic Brotherhood continue the work it has been doing to help those who were impacted by Hurricane Sandy. The organization already has a disaster case manager that has been aiding people. It also received $25,000 from the Robin Hood Foundation, which it used to purchase gift cards for needy families — all of which has been used.

Though the organization is based in Rockville Centre, it does not do all of its work there. Many of the families the Hispanic Brotherhood helps are from the surrounding communities, including Oceanside, Freeport, Long Beach and others. In Rockville Centre, much of the help is for adults who lost their jobs as a result of the storm.

According to Keller, she anticipates that Five Towns residents will be part of the designated area to receive assistance. “We are taking care of the South Shore so if someone from that area comes in, we will help them,” she said.

“We are excited to be in a partnership with the Red Cross, United Way and our two Latino agencies, La Fuerza Unida and Adelante,” said Margarita Grasing, the executive director of the Hispanic Brotherhood, in a release. “Together, we will alleviate the pain of many Hispanic families still waiting for help.”

Though Father Eric Fasano from Our Lady of Good Counsel in Inwood was not aware of the grant, he said many parishioners are just now returning to their homes after the hurricane. “Insurance has been slow in arriving for some, and many of the basic furniture and appliance needs, not to mention utility and grocery bills, are burdensome,” he said. “Good Counsel continues to support as many people as we can, especially with food donations, through the generosity of our parishioners.”

The aid that the Hispanic Brotherhood provides is not just for Latino families, though. Many non-Hispanic families have already used the services of the Hispanic

Brotherhood, Keller said. And the funding that it will receive will go to help anyone who needs it, not just Hispanic families.

“We see a lot of Hispanic families, but also a lot of non-Hispanic families,” said Keller. “People hear Hispanic Brotherhood, and they assume it’s just for Hispanics. But it’s not.”

Ann E. Friedman contributed to this story.