Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Attention expectant mothers of Buffalo! The Bridge Project (TBP), a NYC-based organization that seeks to eradicate child poverty, will be expanding their cash allowances and services to 50 pregnant women who reside within the City of Buffalo.
"The Bridge Project is a guaranteed income program for mothers and babies that provides participants with no strings attached cash assistance for the first three years of the child's life," said Kauribel Javier, Bridge Project's community manager. "As an organization, our mission is to end childhood poverty as we know it and promote healthy baby development, and the best way we think we can do that is by giving moms cash directly."
Javier explains the move to branch out to Buffalo is due to the data that shows that the City of Buffalo has the second-highest rate of childhood poverty in the nation, at nearly 44 percent.
TBP gives low-income expecting mothers up to $1,000 a month, paid in biweekly installments, for three years. Payments to 100 mothers began in July of 2021, and the program scaled up to add an additional 500 mothers in early 2022 and another 500 across all NYC boroughs and Rochester, NY in 2023. The Buffalo program will initially launch with a 50-mother cohort and mothers accepted into the program will receive a one-time prenatal stipend of $1,125, $750/month for the first 15 months of the program, and $375/month for the final 21 months of the program.
According to Javier, the organization currently has 1100 mothers enrolled in their three-year program.
In addition, there are various services that mother have the option to be connected to, such as doula and breastfeeding support, mental health resources and benefits counseling.
"We have really strong partnerships with a couple of community-based organizations in Buffalo," explains Javier. "Some examples include Every Bottom Covered, Calming Doula Initiative and Catholic Charities WIC clinics. We plan on connecting moms to those resources during their onboarding session with us. They will meet with a member of our team where they'll get a bit more info about our program. During that session, we'll also get a sense from the mom of what needs they have, what they're interested in being connected to, and then we will facilitate that connection to one of our community organizations that we have a partnership with."
This money going to the mothers comes solely from a private family foundation called The Monarch Foundation.
The application window starts this Friday, Sept. 15 at 9 a.m. and will remain open until full enrollment is reached, with initial payments set to be distributed on February 24, 2023.
"You currently have to be 18 years or older, you have to live in Buffalo. We're looking for moms who make an annual household income of less than 40k and who are pregnant 23 weeks or less. If that sounds like you, we highly encourage you to go to our website and fill out a very short application," said Javier.
Javier spoke of the strong connection the foundation has with the mothers in the program as well as what the mothers typically spend the money on, you can find the full 6-minute interview in the player above.
