Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month: Hispanic Family Center of Southern NJ Strengthens the Community Through Comprehensive Bilingual Programs

By Kyle Babcock | Published: October 2021

Since its founding 45 years ago, the Hispanic Family Center of Southern NJ, Inc. (HFC) has provided a variety of bilingual services to the community through its East Camden facilities, including domestic violence victim services, job development, access to community health workers, family success centers, English as a second language classes, mental health outpatient services and more.

“HFC serves people of all racial, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, with a particular focus on the needs of the Hispanic and minority populations in Camden County,” said HFC Quality Assurance Coordinator Michael Taylor, MSW. “HFC works hard to provide culturally relevant services from staff that understand the community and that come from a wide range of backgrounds and life experiences.”

With the help of support from organizations such as WSFS, HFC has been able to expand its services greatly through its more than four decades of work in the community.

“WSFS has been supporting HFC’s Workforce Development Programs for the past few years, which has allowed our team to work with hundreds of community members on their employment needs,” said Taylor. “Thanks to the generous funding from WSFS, we’re able to assist clients with their resumes, interview skills and job searches, as well as education and training. It also enables our Workforce Development Program to follow up with clients to provide continued support and assistance, and we have been able to consistently achieve more than 80% job placement with our clients.”

“We’re proud to support the impact HFC is having in southern New Jersey,” said Vernita Dorsey, Senior Vice President, Director of Community Strategy, WSFS Bank. “HFC’s Workforce Development Program, as well as the many other services the organization provides, are truly effecting positive change in the community and we look forward to continuing to support those efforts.”

As the organization has grown through the years, so has the breadth and depth of its programs and services.

“Our Workforce Development Programs have been making an impact for years in the community, and we continue to add on to and further develop these programs to meet the needs of Camden,” said Taylor.

These additions include the upcoming launch of a program that will educate and certify women for careers in information technology, which the organization is hoping to start before the end of the year.

“One of the goals with this program is to increase the financial independence of women in the community, especially women who have experienced sexual or domestic violence,” said Taylor.

As the organization celebrates 45 years of making a positive impact in the community, it will also be hosting a gala toward the end of 2021.

“We’re looking forward to celebrating this milestone occasion with our staff, funders, and community members,” said Taylor. “Further details will be available on our website as we get closer to the event and we’re excited to commemorate our 45^th birthday as we look toward a future of continued service to the community.”

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About the Author – Kyle Babcock
Kyle Babcock is Integrated Communications Strategist at WSFS Bank. He has more than eight years of experience in product and professional services marketing, communications and advertising.