On Thursday, I went to a briefing about NYS Homeland Security grants that are being made available to New York non-profit residential children’s camps. With all that is going on these days, the hall was packed with representatives from camps. We learned that the proposals are due at the end of February, and heard about all the complex forms and information that needs to be presented in order to qualify to be considered for a grant. With close to $50M being offered, you are probably relieved to hear that camps will be much more secure this summer. Well, you would be wrong. We were told that there is virtually no chance that these grants will be decided in enough time before the summer. You might be thinking, the camps can still do security work before the summer and get reimbursed after the grants are awarded. Actually, doing that would invalidate the award, even if the camp qualified. No work can commence before the grant decisions are announced, or the award is forfeited. So what I learned is, that camps are being incentivised NOT TO IMPROVE SECURITY for this summer. Any security improvement they do for this summer will be at their expense, but if they postpone the improvement, it will be paid for. Perhaps if there is an outcry to elected officials, they could convince the bureaucrats to consider our community’s security as an emergency, rather than just another government handout? Rabbi David Shenker Founding Director, Camp Nageela (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
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