History
The origin of The Caring Community is really the story of a couple of highly resourceful members of the Greenwich Village community. In 1971, Jim Janeski, who was then working at St. Vincent's Hospital, was one of the first to take note of what was becoming a common and serious problem: the very residents who had contributed so much to the diversity and vitality of the Village neighborhood in their youth and middle age now had no place to assemble, interact, and learn in their elder years. Jim spoke with his friend, Father Robert Lott, at St. Joseph's Church, who also sensed the urgency of the problem and decided that something had to be done.

The two neighbors decided to send letters to Lucy Cecere, who was active at Our Lady of Pompei Church on Carmine Street, Father Laughlin and Sister Catherine at St. Luke's in the Fields and other community leaders to seek their help in combating this burgeoning problem.

The response was overwhelming and, with several of these organizations on board, the group decided to approach the New York City Department of Aging to apply for some of the federal funding earmarked for the city's elderly. Unfortunately, due to the scarcity of funding for the city's growing number of seniors, they were turned down.

Undeterred, the resourceful residents took it upon themselves to set up luncheon programs at St. Luke's, St. Joseph's, and Our Lady of Pompei Churches, with each of the locations taking turns serving the meals. Volunteers from the various locales were recruited to help, and the actual cooking was done in the kitchen of the school at St. Joseph's.

All the while, the fledgling coalition persisted with their appeals to the Department for the Aging for funding. Then, one day in early 1973, they got the call: "If you can get here by 3 o'clock, you can sign a contract for city funding that will be good for at least two years for a Monday through Friday luncheon program at all three sites."

The mood was triumphant after this unexpected news, but the official recognition exposed one glaring oversight: what to call themselves? Without much deliberation, the members chose the name The Caring Community as the words "Caring" and "Community" represented the heart and soul of the whole endeavor.

"The Caring Community has been my home away from home for the last 28 years! Now as I get older, I know they will help me live independently for as long as I want to, and that means so much."
—Flo Amarosa