Henry Street Settlement opens doors of opportunity for Lower East Side residents and other New Yorkers through social service, arts, and health care programs.
Henry Street Settlement’s 2018 annual report includes the stories of eight immigrants who have found success through Henry Street’s services.
In the late 1800s, when Henry Street Settlement was founded, it was common for immigrants to have heard the rumor that the streets in the United States were paved with gold. They were not.
Yet, the image of this country as a place where opportunity abounds and life is trouble-free continues to fuel imaginations all over the world. And despite the immense hardships that many Henry Street Settlement clients and participants have faced in their new homes, few express regrets about their decision to leave their pasts and families behind to start a new life.
Many of our current clients escaped brutality, abject poverty, or stultifying human rights abuses. Henry Street is proud to provide these immigrant neighbors vital support, whether through help learning English, finding a job, or getting their children enrolled in preschool or accepted to college; through health and wellness support, or creative expression. Since the time of Lillian Wald, we’ve been a place where immigrants are welcomed and their cultures are embraced—a rock-solid commitment that has only grown in importance. Meet some of the immigrants who have found success through Henry Street’s services.
