Who We Are
The Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter, Inc. (NCS) serves people who are chronically homeless, formerly homeless or at-risk of becoming homeless. Established in 1982 by religious and community leaders on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, NCS was founded on the premise that homelessness is the responsibility of the entire community.
1980 - 1981: The Coalition Begins
Reverend Hays Rockwell, Rector of St. James Church, and other community leaders gather in his office to discuss ways of helping the growing homeless population in the neighborhood.
1982: Neighborhood Meal Programs Are Created
Churches and synagogues, including All Souls Unitarian Church, Christ Church Methodist, Church of the Epiphany, Greek Orthodox Cathedral, Madison Avenue Presbyterian, St. James Episcopal Church, Temple Emanu-El, Temple Israel, Temple Shaaray Tefila, and Jan Hus Church begin lunch and dinner programs. The coalition formally incorporates as the Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter, Inc.
1983: The First Program
NCS establishes its first shelter at Lenox Hill Neighborhood House for 19 homeless women.
The "Family of New York Award" is given to Anne Davidson, Celine Marcus, Wolcott B. Dunham, David J. Stern, and Elizabeth Rohatyn by Governor Mario Cuomo.
1984: Day Program Opens
The NCS Day Program, staffed by volunteers and housed in various churches, helps homeless people obtain referrals for essential medical, social, and psychiatric services. The Day Program leads to the creation of the Neighborhood Center in 1989.
1985: NCS Residence Opens at 211 East 81st Street
After a long search for a building, NCS opens a 70-unit supportive residence providing safe and affordable housing.
1987: Tri-Faith Shelter Opens at St. Francis de Sales Church on East 96th Street
Rabbi Ronald Sobel (Temple Emanu-El), Dr. Arthur Caliandro (Marble Collegiate Church), and Father Robert Lott (St. Francis de Sales Church) create a men's shelter to be operated by NCS.
1989: Neighborhood Center for Homeless People Opens at 237 East 77th Street
Responding to the need for a center to meet the basic needs of homeless people—food, clothing, and showers—NCS opens a 24-hour service center.
1992: Volunteer Program Revitalized
NCS redesigns its Volunteer Program to provide greatly needed auxiliary services such as computer skills training, literacy tutoring, recreational activities, and field trips. Cornell University Medical Students begin conducting educational courses on AIDS prevention at the Tri-Faith Shelter.
1994: Interim Housing Program Launched
NCS sets aside four rooms at the Residence to create a transitional housing program for NCHP clients who need to stabilize their lives and develop independent living skills that will prepare them for permanent housing.
1996: East Side Homeless Network Founded
NCS, Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, and Yorkville Common Pantry create the East Side Homeless Network (ESHN) to coordinate service delivery to homeless people on the Upper East Side. NCS establishes a Vocational and Educational Services Program, now called OPTIONS, and a Dinner Program Outreach Team as part of ESHN. The success of ESHN serves as a model for other communities.
1998: Lester Waldman Honored
Tri-Faith Shelter is renamed Lester Waldman’s Place to honor the late Lester Waldman, a long-time NCS Board member.
2005: NCS Research Findings Published
NCS’s first research study "Dual Focus Schema Therapy: A Therapeutic Approach for Homeless Individuals" published in the journal Comprehensive Psychiatry. NCS begins additional research studies at three other drop in centers.
2006: Renovation of NCS Residence Completed
After a major renovation, the NCS residence returns to full capacity and provides permanent supportive housing for 65 formerly homeless men and women. The Residence offers a full range of services and programs to enhance independent living, including case management, counseling, vocational education and training, community meals and recreational activities. The renovated building features a rooftop garden and activity room, and a gracious dining room with a training kitchen that can be used to prepare residents for jobs in food service. This renovation was funded by NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the New York State Office of Mental Health.
2007: NCS Outpatient Treatment Program Opens
NCS opens a licensed drug treatment program to treat 15-20 chronically homeless men and women daily from NCS’s programs. Medical and psychiatric professionals, including addiction counselors, as well as a vocational counselor and licensed acupuncturist, will be on hand to support clients in their recovery from substance abuse.
2008: Neighborhood Center for Homeless People Shuttered
As part of the city's effort to reduce the number of drop-in centers, funding for NCHP was eliminated and the center's doors were closed for the first time since opening nineteen years ago. Over 800 homeless individuals were served by NCHP in 2007 alone.
NCS Publishes Second Research Study
Findings from NCS's second research study were published in The Journal of Personality Disorders, Vol.22 (6). Since 2000 NCS has been researching the psychiatric characteristics of chronically homeless individuals in an effort to better understand their complex needs and improve services for this vulnerable population.
2009: Louis Nine House Opens
In Winter of 2009, NCS opened a new residence that provides 46 studio apartments for 18 to 25-year olds who have aged out of foster care or who are homeless. Residents of this energy-efficient "green" building engage in supportive services geared towards vocational readiness and independent living skills. In keeping with NCS's dedication to sustainable living, the building features a rooftop garden where residents can participate in horticulture training and grow fresh food and flowers.
2010: NCS Opens New Homeless Shelter
With the loss of NCS's drop-in center and three others in Manhattan, the number of people living on our streets, on the steps of our churches and synagogues, and using food programs, pantries and other services has and continues to increase. Addressing the needs of the people on the steps is of particular importance to the host churches.
In response to the desperate need for shelter during these frigid winter months for this group and others on the streets, NCS, in collaboration with the Manhattan Outreach Consortium (MOC) operated by Goddard Riverside Community Center and Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church, opened a 12-bed overnight shelter for those men in January. New York City's Department of Homeless Services is providing funding to keep the shelter open from January through June, Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church is providing space, and other churches and synagogues are helping to supplement food and toiletries.
Because it has staffing and is professionally supervised, this shelter is able to serve people directly from the streets who are not eligible for volunteer-run overnight shelters. Outreach workers are able to engage the guests, where they are indoors and safe, to participate in other services, including a move from the streets to the transitional or permanent housing provided by NCS and other organizations. Together with MOC and our community partners, we will be seeking other alliances to help continue operating this shelter after June.
2010: Dr. Ira Mandelker begins as new Executive Director at NCS
Neighborhood Coalition for Shelter (NCS) is proud to announce that Dr. Ira Mandelker has accepted the position of Executive Director effective October 25, 2010. Dr. Mandelker joins us as current Chief Executive Officer, Anne R. Teicher, retires as CEO of NCS after fifteen years of dedicated and inspired leadership in providing services to the homeless and formerly homeless of New York City.
NCS Board President, David Oliver, states “I take great pride in the accomplishments of NCS, especially under Anne Teicher’s leadership. Now I am looking forward with great anticipation to the work and challenges that lie ahead with our new Executive Director, Dr. Ira Mandelker. Dr. Mandelker’s decision to come on board, in my view, reflects the quality of NCS as an organization and the importance of NCS’s mission. I couldn’t be more excited for NCS and its future.”
Dr. Mandelker joins NCS from HATAS, The Homeless & Travelers Aid Society of the Capital District in Albany where he has served as Executive Director for the past ten years. HATAS is the central intake, assessment, and referral point for the Albany County homeless shelter system, and provides homelessness prevention, housing, employment, and mental health services to homeless and at-risk Albany County residents. Dr. Mandelker is past-chair of the Albany County Coalition on Homelessness, and has served on the Executive Committee of the Albany County Plan to End Homelessness, the Executive Committee of the United Way 211 Northeast Region, the Albany County Housing Trust Fund Task Force, the Albany County Reentry Task Force, The Code Blue Albany Committee, and the Emergency Food and Shelter Program Boards of Albany and Schenectady Counties. Prior to joining HATAS, Dr. Mandelker was Associate Director at Grand Central Neighborhood Social Services, a New York City drop-in center providing human services, employment, and housing opportunities to homeless single adults.
2011: NCS Re-opens Homeless Shelter
City funding ended for our 12-bed men’s shelter on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in June 2010. Without resources, our shelter closed. This year, with winter approaching and no City funding available, Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church and St. James’ Church sponsored a November fundraising event, raised the money privately, and the collaborators again came together (along with Grand Central Neighborhood Mainchance Drop-In Center which provides housing services) to re-open the shelter. In an unusually harsh and snowy New York winter, we have been providing not just shelter – but the warmth of human caring, food, showers and other donated amenities to people who would otherwise be sleeping on the streets. Seven have already been housed this year. Using a “Housing First” approach, we expect that they will be more amenable to other needed services, and hope that they will leave their homelessness behind.