Charles Hammerman, CEO of the Disability Opportunities Fund, announces the investment competition. Included behind the podium are Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman; Stella Spanakos, a member of the County Executive’s Advisory Council for People with Disabilities, who runs The Nicholas Center (far right); Geri Barish, who runs Hewlett House and is a fellow member of the Advisory Council; and Daniel Delehanty, Dime Community Bank’s senior vice president and director of Community Development.
The head of the Disability Opportunities Fund was joined by Nassau County officials in Mineola Tuesday to announce the expansion of investments to assist the disabled community on Long Island.
Charles Hammerman, the president and CEO of the Disability Opportunities Fund (DOF), made the funding announcement with Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman and members of the Nassau County Disabilities Council. Hammerman unveiled an investment competition that will see the DOF invest a projected $250,000 depending on submissions. An additional $75,000 in grants will be allocated to “best-in-class” Nassau County-based nonprofits which support people and children with disabilities.
The new investment comes on the heels of recent findings by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) revealing that there is a nationwide rise in children diagnosed with developmental disabilities.
“The CDC reports that nearly one in 11 children are being diagnosed with autism, intellectual disability, or developmental delay. In addition, they have found that between 2019 and 2021, reports of developmental disabilities across the nation grew from 7.4% to 8.56% among children ages 3 to 17,” Blakeman said. “Local government can only do so much to assist families facing this challenge. A public-private partnership with organizations such as DOF is one proven strategy in responding to the latest data.”
Daniel Delehanty, Dime Community Bank’s senior vice president and director of Community Development, said the bank was proud to be a key sponsor of DOF’s upcoming fundraising gala.
“Dime greatly values our long-standing partnership with DOF,” Delehanty said. “They are truly a national leader and a proven catalyst to improve the quality of life for individuals that are currently underserved.”
While headquartered on in Rockville Centre, DOF has a national reach, providing financial products, technical assistance, equity investment, and financial advisory services that build personal wealth for people with disabilities and their families by assisting organizations serving this market. The nonprofit’s strategies include supporting various projects through co-lending, direct lending, bridge and term loans, equity investments, as well as gap, predevelopment, acquisition, and housing rehabilitation financing, according to its website.
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