A Division of Cornerstone Family Healthcare
Virginia “Ginny” Schneider, who is HVCS’ Vice President of Client Services, was featured in the April issue of the Bureau of Community Support Services’ newsletter. BCSS is part of the New York State Department of Health’s AIDS Institute. BCSS oversees many of our contracts with NYS. Congratulations, Ginny!
LaShonda Cyrus, HVCS’ Senior Program Manager, was appointed to lead the Spring Valley Collaborative. HVCS’ Rockland County office is located in Spring Valley and LaShonda oversees programs there, in Westchester and in Putnam County.The Spring Valley Collaborative is a group of organizations, agencies, service providers that have agreed to work together to address issues that affect the wellbeing of the Spring Valley community and its residents. LaShonda is also chair of the Steering Committee, which develops action plans to enhance coordination among organizations in the Collaborative. Thanks for all you do for our clients, LaShonda, and all those served by members of the Collaborative!
On Friday, September 23, 2016, HVCS hosted a very special 30th Anniversary Party at Ceola Manor in Jefferson Valley, NY. 100 guests raised a glass to toast HVCS’ past, present and future, and US Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney delivered a personal and motivating keynote speech. Later on, advocate, peer and VOCAL-NY Board Member Dawn Carney shared her life’s story and received a standing ovation. Thanks to everyone who attended, donated silent auction items, and supported this momentous milestone with us.
Photos by Melisa Ann Photography – click on the images for full viewing.
Adie Shore, HVCS’ new Director of CQI, Data and Grants Management
Hudson Valley Community Services announced today that Adie Shore, a resident of Scarsdale, will lead a new department which will house quality improvement, data services and grant management. Shore comes to the agency from a long freelance career as a grant writer. She worked previously for the Women’s Enterprise Development Center and the YWCA.
She holds a BS in Math from Long Island University, an MS in Operational Research from the New York Polytechnic Institute and an MA in Finance from Columbia Business School. After college she worked in the banking sector, and began volunteering for non-profits while raising her family. She then decided to devote her skills and interests to help non-profits succeed. She holds a National Grants Professional certification.
HVCS reorganized two small administrative teams which oversee continued quality improvement and data services into one department, and expanded the responsibilities of its grant writer position to run the new department. Shore supervises four employees.
“I’m happy to be working for an organization that believes that everyone has the right to a better quality of life. This is evidenced by HVCS’ commitment to the clients they serve, and the programs they provide,” Shore said. “I’m impressed with HVCS’ commitment to quality improvement and data integrity.” She aims to maintain these high standards while securing funds to sustain existing programs and meet the agency’s future funding needs.
Andrea Straus, Executive Director, congratulated Shore on her new position. “We are delighted to have Adie Shore on board at HVCS. Her arrival is the culmination of executive management’s dream of finding a director who can handle our multiple grant and foundation applications and licensing inquiries. This role also entails managing the increasingly complicated technology for funding application submissions, and integrates our grants, data and CQI functions. She is definitely the right person to do this, and has already begun to lead us in new ventures.”
Hudson Valley Community Services announced today that Toya Bost-Utsey is the new Director of Human Resources at the local non-profit organization. She supervises two employees.
Bost-Utsey holds a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management from Mercy College. She has spent much of her career thus far in human resources at financial institutions, including Hudson Valley Bank in Tuckahoe.
Though her first job after graduation was as a legal secretary, she came to the human resources field by accident. Her first job in human resources was at Cablevision. She is a member of the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM).
Originally from the Bronx, she is now a resident of Croton-on-Hudson.
“I am thrilled to work for such an energetic, welcoming organization,” Bost-Utsey said. She looks forward to working cohesively with all departments. She prides herself on embracing technology to update and streamline the Human Resources department.
“We are fortunate to have Toya Bost-Utsey join our senior management team and to fill an essential role at HVCS,” said Andrea Straus, Executive Director. “Her predecessor had been with us for sixteen years, so it was no small accomplishment to learn the workings of our organization in a very short period of time right when we transitioned to a new health insurance plan, our first switch in decades. I know she will also easily handle multiple personnel, staff training, and policy issues.”
A photo of nearly all HVCS staff members, taken at our December all-staff meeting. Photo by Melisa Pendergrass.
HVCS held its semi-annual staff meeting on December 6, 2015 at the Thayer Hotel. These day-long staff retreats allow us to honor each others’ accomplishments, receive training on important agency or topical matters, and do a little team bonding. Nearly every staff member attended, so we were able to take this wonderful shot of (almost) the entire team!
The day also included fun team building activities such as a “Heads Up”-style card game and a domino challenge.
On Friday, December 11, 2015, HVCS’ Hawthorne office held its annual Holiday Potluck Lunch. Organized by our office manager Phyllis and a small crew, this delicious and entirely staff-created event brought the entire office together for an hour. This year, staffers set up a “Secret Santa” gift exchange for the first time. Everyone got to mingle, enjoy each others’ home-cooked food, and spread some cheer!
Jen Brathwaite, our Assistant Director of Client Services, snapped a few pictures of our Ulster and Dutchess Health Home Care Management team meeting. Every other month, the teams have a “multi-county” Health Home team meeting and as part of the agenda they include team building activities. The staff have given a lot of positive feedback and enjoy these meetings, which are not only fun but also very informative.
Three HVCS staffers–LaShonda Cyrus, Liz Hurley and Tiffany Sturdivant-Morrison–did a poster presentation on one of our quality assurance projects at the New York Academy of Medicine today. The Bureau of HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene presented the conference, entitled “The Power of Quality Improvement: Providers and Consumers Improving Care Together.” Their poster won the “Best Use of Data” Award as determined by votes from the conference participants. Categories were overall best poster presentation, poster showing the best use of data, and most thought provoking poster.
Great job, LaShonda, Liz and Tiffany!
On Friday, April 4, 2014 the Client Services department (HVCS’ largest) held a morning staff meeting in our Newburgh office, followed by a pizza party luncheon and a beautiful cake. It was all to say “Thanks!” for all the great work they do all year long in the service of our clients. Great job, CS Department! (And I hope you saved some of that cake for us.)