Inside the Central Railroad Terminal of Liberty State Park in Jersey City, the 26 agencies working in the statewide Family Assistance Center are still providing financial and emotional support for the families of World Trade Center attack victims.
There are free phones to use, therapy dogs to pet, religious leaders to chat with and agencies to get financial information from.
According to state figures, 3,441 individuals representing 1,147 families have visited the Family Assistance Center since it opened a month ago. 165 death certificate applications have been completed. In order to facilitate this process, the state has waived fees associated with filing the certificates.
The idea for such a center emerged in the wake of the disaster when it realized that more than a third of the victims in the attacks commuted from New Jersey. New York City had already begun assisting people at Pier 94 in Manhattan when New Jersey Acting Gov. Donald T. DiFrancesco pushed forward a plan to help New Jersey families in their own state.
Open from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., the center is safely guarded by state troopers. Officials say it will remain open through December.
In addition to financial aid and emotional counseling, the center also provides job counseling and information about unemployment benefits for people who lost their jobs as a result of the attacks. The New Jersey Department of Labor is one of the state agencies at the site.
"We determine what needs the family has and build a bridge or a relationship with that family," said Frederick P. Task, a Salvation Army general, last week.
Emotional comfort
Upon entering the Family Assistance Center, people are greeted by members of the National Organization for Victims Assistance (NOVA). Wearing blue denim shirts with the NOVA logo on the breast pocket, this non-profit organization assigns one person per family to serve as a guide through the center’s facilities and resources. After an intake form is filled out, the NOVA companion finds out what the family’s needs are and leads them to the appropriate places.
"We make sure that they avail themselves of everything that’s here," said Rhonda Barner, the site coordinator for NOVA. "Most people don’t know what they need or even what is available to them."
Besides providing humans to speak with, the center has "therapy dogs." St. Hubert’s, an animal shelter in Madison, N.J., has sent down volunteers with their own dogs to provide pet therapy for people inside the Assistance Center. Each dog has taken a Canine Good Citizen Test to qualify for the program, assuring that they will be calm around strangers.
Pat Sarles brought Ruffian, her Tibetan Spaniel, to the Assistance Center for the second time on Tuesday. Ruffian, who was in the Westminister dog show this year, has provided families, volunteers, and others emotional comfort, Sarles said.
"One gentleman was sitting quietly," Sarles said. "When I came over with Ruffie, he sort of blossomed. You see the transition in people’s faces when they see the dogs. They just light up."
The dogs are there to comfort everyone that crosses their path. Walking into the terminal, Barbara Vanarsdall, a member of the National Crisis Response Team, picked up Ruffian and began petting him for a few minutes.
"It was a tough day," she said.
"We don’t have to push very often," Sarles said. "People come to the dogs."
Also on hand as well are religious leaders from different denominations. Peter Ross-Gotta, a pastor from Topeka, Kan., said his role in the center was to listen when people wanted to talk. "I had a conversation with a gentleman who lost his only son," he said. "He was just agonizing."
Speaking about his son to a spiritual leader seemed like a temporary relief, he said.
"People are struggling to make sense of this," Ross-Gotta said. "This is so big, and it’s so hard for us to wrap ourselves around."
One area of the center is reserved for "Remembrance Walls," a series of white-washed wooden panels where family members have written messages to and about people who died in the attacks.
Mental health counselors said that the center has tried to offer some closure. For example, DiFrancesco instituted a ferry ride from the center to Ground Zero every day, so families had a chance to come to terms with the incident.
On Oct. 11, the Family Assistance Center ferried 1,500 people to the memorial service at Ground Zero and distributed an urn and flower to each family. The urn contained ruins from the World Trade Center.
"One young woman talked about the fact that her husband had wished to be cremated," Barner said. "This offered some kind of closure for her."
Financial assistance
Inhabiting a rectangular area formed by six trailers immediately outside the terminal, a blend of public agencies and private organizations is available at the assistance center to absorb the financial impact incurred by the attacks.
Among the primary concerns of these agencies is reaching out to families who need assistance with rent, mortgage payments, transportation needs, and loss of personal property. A variety of federal, state, and private agencies is disseminating this money to the public.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the American Red Cross, and a non-profit organization called Tzu Chi have been some of the center’s leading agencies in disbursing money to families.
The center has created a comfortable feeling for the visitors, marked by tables with candy, flowers, and surrounding couches. The Salvation Army and the Red Cross have provided free meals three times a day, and the interior of the terminal offers a daycare center with toys and teddy bears.
Also, as families are exploring the resources available at the center, telephones and computers are available at no charge.