My team began working with JASA and their board approximately 15 years ago when we financed projects in their portfolio located in Brighton Beach and Coney Island. JASA is the go-to agency serving older adults in the New York Metro Area, promoting aging with a purpose, and providing autonomy for older adults.
JASA operates ten affordable housing properties, is a licensed home care agency and offers a breadth of integrative resources for seniors citywide spanning from free legal services, health and mental health services, home-delivered meals, social programming at senior centers and community trainings on elder abuse, peer health support, caregiver assistance and more.
Working with Donald Manning and his staff at JASA has been a real joy. They are a unique, “50 years young” non-profit organization, specializing in well-maintained, affordable housing (primarily Section 8) and community services for seniors.
Most recently, Berkadia financed approximately $46M in loans in Brooklyn and Far Rockaway under the HUD 223(f) program that enabled significant upgrades and repairs to the common areas and apartment residences.
In addition to improving the buildings, the higher leveraged, low interest rate loans also enabled JASA to allocate additional funds for purposes including hiring additional staff (including a Russian translator at the Brighton Beach location) and providing for important resident services.
Berkadia is proud to attend JASA’s Annual Gala which raises money and recognizes the over 40,000 seniors served in this community each year. Although JASA’s scheduled 2020-2022 events were virtual, our team is really looking forward to attending a JASA event in person in 2023!
Most recently, our team contributed funds to a new program called JASANextGen which is designed to connect young third through fifth graders with senior residents. The pairs spend valuable time together, working on volunteer projects and enjoying getting to know each other.
NextGen Junior has a $250 participation fee per child each year, it’s a fully deductible contribution which helps staff the program, fund activities and offer seniors transportation to in-person events. No child will be turned away if they can’t afford the fee, but JASA appreciates any offer to fund scholarships via donations, which can be made online at www.jasa.org/donate.
To learn more about JASA, visit JASA.org or click here to view their most recent impact report.