HELPING YOU

Our aim is to intervene quickly in order to avoid allowing a difficult situation to become worse,
with the continual aim of maintaining close and personalized contact
Our actions are specific and are taken:
- at the outset: during the wait for official assistance to get going,
- at the end: once all U.S. and French government grants have been exhausted.

Our actions are on both level:
-  a financial nature; our contributions are always targeted and concrete.
-  an assistance-advice nature, seeking practical solutions suited to each person.
We function essentially through regular telephone discussions in order to maintain the confidentiality,
privacy and independence of each of the speakers or partners. We don’t have an office to minimize our cost of maintenance.

WHOM DO WE ASSIST? “Breaking one’s isolation and deprivation”

We bring our assistance to French citizens residing in the US who experience serious and
unforeseeable reversals of status, deaths, illness, divorce, employment loss and especially to:

- Elderly persons who are isolated and who can no longer get around: We bring them comfort
by telephone, through visits and with packages, especially over the holidays.
We maintain human contact faithfully over the days, months and years.

- Children of families in financial difficulty: help with back-to-school needs, cafeteria costs,
help with afterschool activities and contributions toward summer camp. What a joy for all to see
a child discover the country, the sea, the mountains, a sport or a passion.

- Families in extreme distress, sometimes living in shelters, to whom we try to give emotional
support as well as a push in the right direction with administrative advice so they may pull themselves
together again and find clarity and dignity again.

- And sometimes French people who are in New York temporarily who find themselves in a
terrible, unforeseen situation.

HOW? “Overcoming difficult moments”

Network
- To target our efforts we work in close collaboration with the Consulate’s Social Service which bring
new cases to our attention. The first step is therefore to make oneself known to this department
so they may draw up a personalized assessment. All types of official aid will be considered.
Our association intervenes
in the beginning: during the wait for official aid to start arriving,
at the end: once all US and French government grants have been exhausted.
- We also receive direct requests through our network of people and through our information
campaigns (word of mouth, flyers, mailings, press coverage, website).
We listen to each one and put them in contact with the right organizations and services according
to their specific needs and the level of urgency.

Support
- In this way we bring up to date the actual scene of the French community in need, allowing us to
act efficiently. We operate on a case-by-case basis but we always attach a great deal of importance
to the notion of support. We consolidate our actions while ensuring the efforts and
willingness of each to overcome difficult moments.

OUR ACHIEVEMENTS IN 2008

- We came to the assistance of more than 20 families in distress: the extent of our financial
contribution will not be known until completion of a detailed review of each file.
In 2008, Entraide Française intervened specifically upon demand of payment for:
- medical expenses,
- rents,
- security deposits,
- repatriation,
- college tuition,
- educational support.

- We obtained volunteer and free assistance by social workers.

- We brought back-to-school financial assistance to over 50 children.

- We monitor a large group of elderly persons or families and deliver holiday packages of useful and festive high
quality items to their homes, some of which are provided by our French sponsors, others of which
are obtained thanks to the contributions of our generous donors.

This year, students from the French schools in New York helped us put together the packages and
assisted in delivering these presents as part of their Community Service.

- We expanded our circle of solidarity. New members came to strengthen the Entraide Française
team with specific missions:
social, medical and administrative affairs,
the association’s operations and communication,
acting as human go-between on the ground.
Many occasional volunteers helped us distribute packages and take care of mailings.

- This year we also expanded our contacts to include the French-speaking American community
in New York in the hopes of establishing regular new donors.