|
||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
|
•FCCF
SUPPORTS CLS An anonymous donor who receives philanthropic advisory services from the Fairfield County Community Foundation (FCCF) awarded Connecticut Legal Services a $35,000 matching grant to support the services that CLS provides to the low-income community in Fairfield County. Through the grant, FCCF matched any new or increased donation that CLS received from any member of the Fairfield County community. In 2009, CLS received a $40,000 competitive grant from the FCCF, which was supplemented by an additional $20,000 from the same anonymous donor. “The Foundation continues to demonstrate vital support for the work that we do for the low-income population of Fairfield County by awarding us this grant,” says Steven Eppler-Epstein, the CLS executive director. “The $70,000 in new money we raised through this grant allows us to help low-income residents of Fairfield County who need us now more than ever.” The FCCF promotes the growth of community and regional philanthropy to improve the quality of life throughout Fairfield County. Individuals, families, corporations, and organizations can establish charitable funds and contribute to existing funds. The Foundation also provides philanthropic advisory services to donors and develops and leads initiatives to tackle critical community issues. The FCCF has awarded more than $110 million in grants to nonprofits in Fairfield County and beyond. For more information, visit www.fccfoundation.org. “The Foundation believes in and supports the work that CLS does
in our community,” says Karen R. Brown, vice president of programs. “During
this difficult financial time, we are thrilled we were able to successfully
broker this second year general operating support grant from a very
generous donor whom I have the privilege of working with at FCCF.” PFIZER AND CONNECTICUT LEGAL SERVICES LAUNCH NEW PRO BONO COLLABORATION Pfizer and Connecticut Legal Services have launched an innovative collaboration—the Pfizer-CLS Pro Bono Project. It will provide legal assistance to vulnerable, low-income elderly people and offer Pfizer attorneys an opportunity to participate in community service. “We are very excited about this collaboration, which will serve as a model for future efforts,” says Steve Eppler-Epstein, CLS executive director. “Legal aid funding has fallen in recent years, and we are looking for creative ways to deliver the help people desperately need in these hard times. This collaboration will increase the number of vulnerable seniors who get help responding to consumer law pressures and increase Pfizer’s already substantial presence in the local charitable community.” The project teams
members of Pfizer’s legal department with
CLS staff to help elderly low-income clients respond to their consumer
law issues and deal with abusive debt collection practices. The project
will enhance the CLS Consumer Law Project for Elders—a consumer
hotline for low-income people who are 60 or older. CLS staff will refer
14 cases per month to Pfizer attorneys, who have already committed
to providing legal help. “This project is extraordinary because
an entire corporate law department—with support from the corporation
itself—is making a commitment to use its talents in a concerted
effort to help those who need it most,” says John P. Casey. He
is an attorney with Robinson & Cole LLP, a member of the CLS Board
of Directors and a driving force behind this collaboration. Connecticut Legal Services will be able to help more children than ever in the coming year. Thanks to the Tow Foundation’s generous renewal of its $50,000 grant, CLS and the New Haven Legal Assistance Association will continue the Stop the School to Prison Pipeline project (STOPP). STOPP helps keep students who have disabilities from being suspended or expelled from school and referred to juvenile court because of their disability-based behaviors by advocating for appropriate educational programs. Students (or their parents) who find themselves in such situations can be referred by any community provider or even refer themselves to legal services. CLS also represents children involved in abuse and neglect cases in the Bridgeport juvenile court through its new project, the Children and Youth Advocacy Team. “We are very proud of this work and the impact that it has had and will continue to have on children in crisis,” says CLS managing attorney for the Children at Risk Unit, Cathy Holahan. The Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut (CFECT) renewed its $15,000 grant to the CLS Homeless Benefits Project. CLS advocates help homeless individuals with disabilities, such as Alan, achieve financial stability. He is a single man in his 30s. For most of his childhood, Alan was severely beaten and abused, which caused serious physical damage and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). He was unable to hold a job and did the best he could with his physical limitations; however, he wasn’t able to earn enough money to support himself and was homeless. Alan needed help finding a source of income and was referred to CLS for assistance. As the pain from his physical disorders increased, he needed to take more and stronger painkillers to help him get through the day. He also was deteriorating mentally because of the pain and the untreated PTSD. At one point, Alan accidentally overdosed on his medication and was admitted to a hospital. He was then transferred into a supportive housing program until he could find income. With the help of CLS, Alan was able to secure disability benefits. Now he is making the transition to his own apartment and has services in place to help him with both his physical and mental disabilities. The CFECT also
renewed its support for the CLS Domestic Violence Support Project
with a grant
of $3,000. “The Community Foundation of
Eastern Connecticut has been a consistent supporter of our work,” says
Astrid Lebron, CLS director of development. “Their support has
allowed us to get a number of projects off the ground, and we look
forward to this being another project that we can pull into our general
services.” CLS VOLUNTEER HONORED FOR SERVICE It all started with door hinges. Attorney Jill Plancher was new to Greenwich and mired in the complexities of building a house for her family. One day, she realized she had spent the entire day going back and forth with her architect and contractor about the somewhat mind-numbing intricacies of nickel-plated door hinges, ultimately holding firm for a simple design. The next morning, she picked up her phone and called Claudine Siegel, former managing attorney of the Connecticut Legal Services Stamford office. “You have to let me work for CLS!” Plancher said. Nearly 15 years later, Plancher still volunteers at CLS. She has handled more than 700 cases—some of them the most intense, heartbreaking, complicated family cases that Stamford CLS attorneys have ever seen. In addition, she donates the legal fees she receives as a court-appointed guardian ad litem or attorney for children in highly contested custody cases. “Those fees have resulted in more than $150,000 in income to CLS, a particularly welcome addition to CLS during these financially tough times,” says Deborah Witkin, CLS deputy director. “Jill has been extremely generous with both her time and money. She brings a calm assuredness to situations that otherwise would escalate, making her particularly effective in the family and children’s cases she takes.” More than just her clients and colleagues recognized Plancher’s efforts this year. The Connecticut Law Tribune honored Plancher as its Pro Bono Award recipient at Honors Night ceremonies on June 2. She also received the Liberty Bell Award from the Fairfield County Bar Association at its May 6 Law Day luncheon. Plancher earned her law degree from Harvard University in 1988. She spent the next several years in the Boston area, starting as a clerk for Robert Keeton, a U.S. District Court judge, and then moving to the office of the Massachusetts attorney general, handling public corruption cases and appeals. She also spent a year as federal prosecutor in Indiana before deciding to stay home full-time with her three children. Plancher wasn’t sure what her next step would be when she and her family moved to Connecticut. “I’ve always been very involved in public-interest work,” says Plancher. At Harvard Law, she worked for a prison legal project and at the school’s legal aid clinic. “I thought … volunteering at CLS would be a good way to get back into it.” Plancher works approximately 30 hours per week in the Family Law Unit and spends an average of ten to 15 hours per week representing children in Stamford courts. “I enjoy working in the Stamford court,” she notes, “and CLS is a great place to work.” “She is quite literally a lifesaver to us,” says Rick
Brody, managing attorney of the CLS Stamford office. “We are
so short-staffed that even with Jill’s help, we have to turn
away many eligible clients. Plus, she’s a terrific mentor for
other legal aid attorneys. There is no differentiating between Jill
and the paid staff. That’s a testament both to how well engrained
she is in the office and how much we want her to be part of the office.” CLS KICKS OFF 2011 CAMPAIGN FOR JUSTICE Connecticut Legal Services kicked off its 2011 fund-raising campaign in March. The goal—$300,000. “We have a team of committed volunteers who work very hard to help us reach our fund-raising goals. With their help, we expect another successful year and a strong response to this year’s request for donations,” says Astrid Lebron, the CLS director of development. “Our Campaign for Justice provides CLS with urgently needed funds to serve the growing population of low-income clients in need,” adds Tom Goldberg, CLS Board chair. “In addition, the strength of our campaign provides an indication to funders of the depth of our community support and helps CLS secure other funding, which is very important.” The 2010 fund-raising campaign was very successful by any measure.
The generosity of private organizations and individuals resulted in
725 donations totaling more than $301,000. This funding helps CLS provide
much-needed civil legal assistance to members of the low-income community.
Please continue to support our work on behalf of low-income individuals
and families who face harsh legal problems. 2010 Campaign for Justice Volunteers Jay F. Malcynsky Aaron S. Bayer Ross Garber REGIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIRS Timothy Bates Dennis G. Ciccarillo Eva M. DeFranco Marvin Farbman Norman K. Janes Susan F. Jordan Michael Kaelin Mark D. Leighton John J. McGrath Jr. Jonathan Orleans Shelley Sadin Isabella Squicciarini Thomas A. Weaver Special thanks
to the 2009–2010
CLS Board of Directors Fund-Raising Committee: Claudine Siegel, CLS Stamford office manager and Family Law Unit director, retired from CLS in 2010 after 35 years of service. During her legal services career, Claudine helped more than 5,000 clients, many of whom faced horrendous levels of family violence but nevertheless moved on to safe and productive lives. “I loved being a legal services attorney because there I found that part of law [that] had to do with justice,” she comments. “I also found great colleagues, compelling clients, and challenging cases.” Claudine accomplished much for low-income people facing legal issues during her tenure with CLS. She argued and won the groundbreaking Connecticut Supreme Court case Levertue v. Niman, which established the right of low-income paternity defendants to be represented by counsel. She argued in the appellate decision in Benavides v. Benevides, which established the principle that legal aid attorneys have a right equal to that of private attorneys to claim attorneys’ fees in cases in which their clients prevail. In addition to her triumphs in the courtroom, Claudine wrote a manual informing the many people whom legal services can’t represent how to proceed pro se to dissolve their marriages. The manual was so good that the family law courts adopted it and continue to print and update it as their own. Claudine’s greatest legacy, though, is the scores of attorneys she trained, advocates who continue to bring the highest level of commitment to the needs of their clients. “In addition to representing individual clients, I was able to do a multitude of things, among which was teaching family law to so many and seeing them blossom as confident attorneys,” Claudine says. She is respected and beloved both inside legal services and in the broader social services community. Claudine will continue her relationship with CLS by volunteering her
time and efforts in the Stamford office and handling family law cases. LONGTIME CLS VOLUNTEER GAIL TOMBERG RETIRES On June 9, friends and colleagues gathered for a luncheon to celebrate Gail Tomberg’s 21 years of dedicated volunteer service to Connecticut Legal Services. As the CLS Fairfield County pro bono coordinator, “Gail worked tirelessly to ensure that others have access to justice,” commented Rick Brody, the CLS managing attorney of the Stamford office. “Her compassion, dedication, and expertise will truly be missed.” As one of her last CLS tasks, Gail agreed to talk to Briefly about what the role of pro bono coordinator and her work for Stamford’s poor meant to her. What were your responsibilities as the pro bono coordinator? What types of cases would you refer to volunteer pro bono attorneys? How did you make the pro bono referrals? How many cases did the volunteer pro bono attorneys take each year? What were you doing before you volunteered for CLS? Do you
have any thoughts or advice you’d like to share with
future pro bono coordinators? Is there
anything else you’d
like to add? |
||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
