Fadwa’s Story

To say Fadwa is driven is an understatement. She doesn’t dream of becoming a surgical nurse, she is actively taking steps to make it happen. And to make her mother proud.

Fadwa lost her mother to cancer when she was just 13 years old. Her father expected Fadwa to assume her mother’s responsibilities and moved the family often, keeping them distanced from any extended family. She was not allowed to have friends or participate in extracurricular activities. She attended five different high schools and managed to maintain excellent grades while she cooked, cleaned, and took care of her two brothers and father.

At 17, she was abandoned by her father and placed in SCO’s foster care program. SCO helped stabilize the teen, placed her with a foster family, and eventually was able to locate a maternal aunt who opened her heart and home to her long-lost niece through kinship foster care.

Despite her early challenges, Fadwa stays focused on the opportunities ahead of her. SCO’s foster care staff helped her prepare for college; guiding her through the application process and helping her achieve both a Dream USA Scholarship and a Youth in Foster Care Award.  Currently a student at Borough of Manhattan Community College, SCO helped her secure an internship with a surgeon at Mount Sinai Hospital.

Fadwa’s goal is to keep her GPA high enough to get into nursing school. And we have no doubt she will achieve this and so much more.

 

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CFL Co-op, Business Development

The CFL Cooperative Development Program (CDP) organizes community members to create worker-owned cooperative businesses with the mission of economic and social justice. Through CFL’s holistic, neighborhood-rooted approach, CDP:

  • Builds leadership and coaches cooperative members and community organizations
  • Cultivates relationships to strengthen the cooperative movement
  • Generates and shares best practices and models for cooperative growth

Since 2006, CDP has incubated and supported more than 15 cooperative businesses, including Si Se Puede/We Can Do It cleaning, Beyond Care childcare, Golden Steps elder care, Émigré Gourmet catering, Trusty Amigos dog walking and pet care, Maharlika office cleaning, Sunset Scholars tutoring, and NannyBee childcare.

Resources

For a full list of CFL-supported cooperatives, access our 2019 Cooperative Business Directory. 

Interested in starting a worker cooperative? Fill out this brief form to receive our Cooperative Startup Guides.

To receive updates from the CFL Cooperative Development Program, sign up for our newsletter.

Who Can Benefit from this Program

Immigrant and low-income workers who want to create new pathways to economic stability and opportunities for leadership

How to Access this Program or Service

Contact the program at 718.633.4823, coopdevelopment@sco.org.

This program is associated with...

Center For Family Life

Our mission is to promote positive outcomes for children, adults and families in Sunset Park through the provision of a comprehensive range of neighborhood-based family and social services. Read More

Success Stories

Jewelle

Madonna Heights Residential School

"I'm not going to give up because I know they're not going to give up on me." Learn More

Fadwa’s Story

Foster Care and Education

“I’m going to be successful regardless of what I’ve been through." Learn More

Last year,

97%

of children in our early education centers met or exceeded national mathematics performance standards

Last year,

106

children were adopted by loving forever families