331 Main Street, 2nd Fl., Suite 200, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601 • Tel. (845) 471-0058 •

OFFICES: White Plains • Mount Vernon • Yonkers • Peekskill• Newburgh • Kingston • Poughkeepsie • Spring Valley • MONTICELLO

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For more information, contact Loretta Spence, Director of Development, Mid-Hudson Valley

(845) 471-0058, x. 423 ~

Legal Services of the Hudson Valley to Honor

Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP and Dr. Dean Scher of Catholic Charities

Community Services of Orange and Sullivan

at 2nd Annual Orange & Sullivan Partners in Justice Reception

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY, March 27, 2017… Legal Services of the Hudson Valley (LSHV) has announced that it will honor Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP as “Champion of Justice” and Dr. Dean Scher, CEO, and Catholic Charities Community Services of Orange and Sullivan as “Advocate for Justice” at its 2nd Annual Orange & Sullivan Partners in Justice Reception, a fundraiser to support its service to children and families in those two counties. The event will be held on Thursday, May 17, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m., at The Meadowbrook, New Windsor.

LSHV’s mission is to provide free, high quality counsel in civil matters for poor and low-income individuals and families who cannot afford to pay an attorney when their basic human needs are at stake.The nonprofit organization is the only provider of comprehensive civil legal services to seven counties of the Mid- and Lower-Hudson Valley (Orange, Sullivan, Dutchess, Ulster, Putnam, Rockland, and Westchester). In 2017, its 135-member staff handled 14,993 cases (including 2,625 in Orange County and 641 in Sullivan County) for 11,871 clients, including 8,101 women, 1,848 survivors of domestic violence, and 5,387 persons with disabilities. It impacted 34,031 individuals in all households served. LSHV has provided services in Orange and Sullivan Counties, NY since 2004. Prior to 2017, when we opened a satellite office in Monticello, Sullivan County residents were served out of our Newburgh office.

As a prominent and well-respected, yet accessible, law firm celebrating a milestone anniversary this year, Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLPwill be honored for its 50 years of service to individual, business, non-profit and municipal clients and the Mid-Hudson Valley communities it serves, including the cities and towns of Newburgh, Middletown, Monticello, Kingston, Beacon, Poughkeepsie, Hudson, Port Jervis, Cornwall, Hyde Park, Patterson, Warwick, Goshen, Wallkill, Fishkill, Nyack, New City, Clarkstown, Monroe, White Plains and Yonkers. Jacobowitz and Gubits’ 20-plus attorneys and full-time staff of paralegals and legal assistantsbring substantial experience, legal knowledge and effective resources to both simple and complex legal matters involving a wide range of practice areas (i.e., litigation, criminal law, bankruptcy, elder law, estate planning, employment law, matrimonial and family law, commercial and residential real estate, business law, arts and entertainment, environmental law, municipal law, planning and zoning, equine law, taxation and tax planning), and achieve consistently effective results. The firm and its partners are the recipients of many awards, among them the Orange County Chamber of Commerce’s Medium Business of the Year Award (2016); The 2016 Dorothy Kartashevich Consumer Award by the Community Health Care Association of New York State, the 1996 YWCA of Orange Countyand Sarah Wells Girl Scout Council Women of Achievement Award (presented to Marcia A. Jacobowitz, Partner); the Women’s Bar Association of Orange & Sullivan County’s Outstanding Young Lawyer Award and the Orange County Rising Star Award (both presented to Managing Partner, Michele L. Babcock, in 2009);the Orange County Bar Association’s2008 Lifetime Achievement Award and the State of Israel Man of the Year (presented to Founder and Senior Partner, Gerald N. Jacobowitz).Partner Gary M. Schuster, like others at Jacobowitz and Gubits, has distinguished himself and this firm through an exemplary level of volunteerism and pro bono service toorganizations serving diverse community interests, including economic development, health and human services, arts and culture, education, animal welfare, social clubs, sports, veterans and more. In 2018, as part of its anniversary commemoration, Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP is recognizing its support of 50 community-based organizations, including: Orange County Citizens Foundation, The Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan, RECAP, Inc., Orange County Arts Council, Walden Local Development Corporation, Orange County Land Trust, Families First New York, Maverick Concerts, Hudson Highlands Nature Museum, Mid-Hudson Pattern for Progress. The Orange County Partnership, Sullivan County Partnership for Economic Development, Newburgh Institute for the Arts and Ideas, The Meyer & Lillian Jacobowitz Foundation, Inc., Claire J. Hoyt Memorial Foundation, Inc., McSherry Foundation, Mohonk Preserve, Children’s Rights Society, Inc., Habitat for Humanity, Cornwall On Hudson Riverfest, Inc. and Re-Think Local.

Gerald Jacobowitz said “We are excited to receive this prestigious award. Thank you to Legal Services of the Hudson Valley for your leadership and continued dedication to providing free, high-quality legal services to those in need. J&G is proud to partner with you to help achieve equal access to justice for all and to make a difference in our community.”

Catholic Charities Community Services of Orange and Sullivanwill be honored for its ongoing partnership with Legal Services of the Hudson Valley.Catholic Charities provides essential homelessness prevention services to residents of Orange and Sullivan Counties. For those facing eviction, Catholic Charities’ ability to step in with financial assistance and case management is a crucial complement to LSHV’s legal advocacy. When LSHV identified the need for a physical office in Sullivan County, Dean Scher and Catholic Charities generously located space within their facilities, which permitted LSHV to establish its first satellite office location in Monticello.

Dr. Dean Scher, CEO, said “Catholic Charities works to help people with the basic necessities of life, including food and shelter. Frequently, we find that our clients are faced with legal challenges as well and we’re able to refer them to Legal Services of the Hudson Valley. LSHV serves as an advocate to ensure that those most in need have their legal and human rights represented. Our agencies share similar missions to serve the marginalized and disenfranchised and we appreciate the collaborative and reciprocal partnership as we work to support those missions. We are grateful that LSHV is recognizing the work of Catholic Charities and look forward to our future work together.”

Founded in 2006 as an independent, not-for-profit human service agency, Catholic Charities Community Services of Orange and Sullivan is committed to building a compassionate and just society. Catholic Charities Community Services of Orange and Sullivan works in close collaboration with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York to provide services to those in need in Orange, Sullivan, and Ulster Counties. Catholic Charities Community Services of Orange and Sullivan serves the homeless, the hungry, the emotionally and physically handicapped, as well as immigrants, and the marginalized and vulnerable of Orange and Sullivan Counties. Catholic Charities collaborates with parishes, Catholic, and non-Catholic partners alike to assist people of all religions. Catholic Charities strives to be an integral part of the human service and care delivery system in Orange and Sullivan Counties, touching the lives of anyone in need of care, hope, and help. Last year, Catholic Charities served more than 42,000 individuals and families, regardless of race, religion, or ability to pay.

Programs include treatment and recovery assistance for drug, alcohol, and gambling addiction, as well as prevention and education services. Catholic Charities also provides anti-poverty assistance, such as emergency food and shelter and case management, for those facing eviction or struggling with issues of homelessness and hunger. Additional assistance is available through the Resource Exchange which distributes donations of gently-used furniture, household items, and other basic necessities of life to individuals and families coping with challenges. Immigration assistance is also available for those journeying along the path to citizenship. Through Catholic Charities’ spectrum of services, the organization strives to lend a hand up to those in need so they may enjoy a brighter future and improved quality of life.

Dr. Dean Scher has served as Catholic Charities top executive since the agency’s establishment more than a decade ago. A psychologist specializing in the role trauma plays in addiction, treatment, and recovery, Dr. Scher has overseen Catholic Charities expansion into Sullivan and Ulster, which more than doubled the size of the agency and expanded its scope of services.

Legal Services of the Hudson Valley’s CEO, Barbara Finkelstein explained why the awareness-raising 2nd Annual Orange & Sullivan Partners in Justice event deserves support, saying “Since 1967, we have been assuring fairness in the justice system — regardless of income — to hundreds of thousands of our neighbors who have nowhere else to turn. The work we do each day provides free civil legal services to those who can’t afford an attorney when necessities of life are at stake.”

As of today’s date, this year’s event sponsors are: Gold: Jacobowitz and Gubits, LLP; Silver:Catholic Charities

Community Services of Orange and Sullivan and an individual attorney (anonymously); Bronze: Lakeland

Bank, Orange Regional Medical Center, Rhinebeck Bank, and Walden Savings Bank.

30 community leaders have lent their support to LSHV and this program by serving on the Honorary Event Committee.

Guest tickets to the event cost $60 each. The price of Friend tickets is $85 each and Patron tickets is $150 each; Friends and Patrons will be listed in the program booklet as supporters of Legal Services of the Hudson Valley.

There are various advertising opportunities, ranging in price from $60 - $500, as well as three levels of event sponsorship which cost $1,250, $2,000, and $3,500. Sponsorships received in April will be recognized in the program booklet and on signage at the event.

For more information about the event, or to purchase ads or tickets, call LSHV’s Director of Development, Mid-Hudson Valley, Loretta Spence at (845) 471-0058, x. 423, e-mail , or visit

Information on LSHV’s programs is available online at To obtain assistance, call 1-877-574-8529 (877-LSHV-LAW).

###