New Rochelle Mayor Takes the Challenge for Children and Families

WHITE PLAINS, NY — Mayor Noam Bramson of New Rochelle, and Mayor Mary Foster of Peekskill have joined White Plains Mayor Thomas M. Roach to be the first three Westchester County leaders to sign on to the Mayors’ and Supervisor’s Action Challenge for Children and Families. In addition, the Westchester Municipal Official’s Association has endorsed the challenge. Westchester Children’s Association (WCA) has taken the mantle from the National Mayors Action Challenge, to call on County-wide municipalities to set specific, measurable, locally-defined goals or targets in the following areas to ensure that every child has:

Opportunities to learn and grow; a safe neighborhood to call home; a healthy lifestyle and environment; and a financially fit family in which to thrive.

As part of the Challenge, Mayor Bramson and the New Rochelle Youth Bureau will work jointly with our local youth service providers to engage all youth in the various programs that address employment, leadership development, and service learning . In addition, as part of their Sustainability Plan, GreeNR, the City is working to create a comprehensive pedestrian and cycling system by 2030.

“By focusing today on the educational and public health needs of youngsters, we can ensure a better future for our entire community,” said Mayor Noam Bramson. “New Rochelle is pleased to build on its prior collaborative efforts and to work in concert with other communities throughout the country,”

In Peekskill, Mayor Foster, along with the Peekskill School District, plan to strengthen and expand the school internship program to give all young people, regardless of income, the opportunity to experience the world of work and make connections between school and employment. In addition, the City will build on the existing senior citizen and youth advisory councils to form an intergenerational Senior-Youth Advisory Council to improve relations between the two populations and allow them to work together to solve problems.

“Peekskill is proud to build on the successful collaborative programs we offer the City’s teens and young adults,” said Mayor Foster. “Every young person deserves the opportunity to become successful, healthy adults.”

“WCA has made this national challenge our own and hope all municipalities large and small will sign on,” said Allison Lake, Deputy Director of the Westchester Children’s Association.

“The Westchester Municipal Official’s Association (WMOA) is pleased to work with the WCA on this important initiative to help strengthen our communities through education and training for young people,” said Anne Janiak Executive Director Westchester Municipal Officials Association

White Plains, as announced last Spring, will participate in the Challenge by helping to improve the employment landscape for youth, and creating safe bike lanes throughout White Plains so that children and youth can safely ride their bicycles to school, work, and for exercise.

The Mayor’s Action Challenge for Children and Families was first unveiled in 2008, at the National League of Cities’ Congress of Cities and Exposition in Orlando, Florida. WCA has focused the Challenge locally and is reaching out to all Westchester municipal leaders of cities, towns and villages to have them join the Challenge and help support a safer, healthier, and more financially secure future for all children in Westchester County.

For more information about the Mayor’s and Supervisor’s Challenge contact Allison Lake at the Westchester Children’s Association: (914) 946-7676 x304 or by email at: alake@wca4kids.org.