Each summer, Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison hosts interns who both add capacity to our team and have a lasting impact on our residents’ lives. This summer at Amandla Crossing and Imani Park, we are happy to have Eva Lebowitz, Michelle Qiu and Kwarysha Howard as part of our team.

From the end of June through July, Eva and Michelle worked with us through our partnership with Rutgers University’s Equity in Action Summer Internship (EASI), a program that Mission First has been participating in for nearly a decade. EASI focuses on social determinants of health with a social justice lens by placing students in the Rutgers Health programs with community sites in the greater Newark or Central New Jersey areas, where they co-create a program to benefit its constituents.

Eva is a rising senior in the Rutgers School of Public Health, majoring in Public Health, concentrating in Health Systems and Policy. Her career goals are to work in public service within a governmental agency, where she can use policy research to develop programs and policies that benefit underserved communities. She said, “Effective public health efforts begin by understanding and engaging with the effort’s target audience, and Mission First has allowed me this opportunity. By listening to residents’ perspectives, observing how their needs are addressed and seeing firsthand how social determinants shape health outcomes at the individual level, I believe I will be better prepared to create policies that are truly responsive to community needs.”

Michelle is a rising junior in the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, majoring in Pharmacy. She said, “My goal is to become a healthcare professional who not only understands medications and disease states, but also recognizes the social, economic and environmental factors that influence health. This experience will help me better serve future patients and contribute to advancing health equity in my community.” Through this internship, Michelle has realized that health is influenced by much more than medications, and wanted to create programs that address health literacy, nutrition, community connection and access to resources.

Both Eva and Michelle have developed a healthy eating and health literacy initiative through community engagement, two key pillars of our resident services work. They are collaborating on a Community Mural Art project at Amandla Crossing and Imani Park tasking residents to create imagery, either individually or as a group, focused on something that is meaningful to them. Residents were given prompts such as “represent community” or “represent your story” and asked to draw images to reflect those topics. To attract residents to participate, Eva and Michelle hosted a “Paint and Sip” event at both properties with coffee and snacks to encourage reflection and foster a sense of community.

They also hosted a Wellness Resource Day for residents to support self-care and showcase community support agencies for mental wellness, in partnership with Alliance Center for Independence, Vision of Hope, NAMI Middlesex, Coordinated Family Care and Central Jersey Family Health Consortium offering information on resources. Rutgers University Health Services Clinic added to the event by providing BMI, glucose and blood pressure screenings and treatment education. These enhanced partnerships developed by Eva and Michelle will surely add to the robust programming options for our residents at Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison.

On July 30th, Eva and Michelle presented a poster summarizing their work as part of their EASI internship to students and faculty in the Rutgers School of Public Health. During the presentation, they reflected on their mutually beneficial work over the summer.

Kwarysha is a student at Rutgers School of Public Health completing her Master of Public Health Practice Experience, where community partners, students and faculty collaborate through meaningful work to solve and reflect on public health challenges that affect communities. “My goal is to apply the knowledge gained at Mission First Housing, to grow as a public health professional by applying my understanding of how housing, income, healthcare access and other social determinants affect mental health,” said Kwarysha.

From July through August, Kwarysha developed a practical, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)-informed interpersonal effectiveness skills project, Finding Your Voice, to strengthen communication and self-advocacy among residents. The program allows residents to self-reflect on real life situations to learn how to regulate emotions through stress communication skills – asking themselves, “If I need something, how do I get what I need?”

The 4-part series introduces methods for residents to express their needs, set healthy boundaries, manage conflict, maintain relationships and preserve self-respect in family, healthcare, education, employment and community settings. The sessions are held in-person at Amandla Crossing and virtually for residents at Imani Park. Kwarysha’s interest in this topic comes from witnessing hesitation from people in speaking with medical professionals due to healthcare trauma affecting their access to formal treatment. She hopes that residents will be able to focus on their communication goals and be comfortable in knowing how to get what they want.

Internships are a give and take between employers and students. Eva, Michelle and Kwarysha have given Mission First and its residents in Edison so much value that will live on beyond their term, and we hope that we have supported the education goals of the Rutgers students and opened up their curiosity in public health. Thank you for spending the summer with us!

In 2021, a partnership between Rutgers University School of Environmental and Biological Sciences and Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison started after Rutgers Department of Plant Biology graduate students donated materials and grew plants for three raised bed gardens on-site at Imani Park.

As a next step, Mission First recruited intern Andrea Dean, a Registered Horticultural Therapist, to advance the purpose of the gardens at Imani Park, offering both individual and group activities for residents interested in identifying and working on personal goals through the use of plants and the garden. 

Now, five years later, the program has expanded at Imani Park, and we have added a garden at Amandla Crossing thanks to funds from the Community Development Block Grant program and Edison Township.

“The garden provides additional opportunities to support physical and mental health and well-being,” said Andrea. “In the garden, residents can learn how to grow and eat nutritious food, grow flowers and plants that beautify their community and also engage in physical activity. Additionally, the garden offers a space for rest and relaxation, gathering and connecting with neighbors and experiencing growth and learning.”

In November 2024, Mission First hired Andrea as our Food Pantry Program Assistant to expand our on-site Food Pantry program and the gardening program to Amandla Crossing.

“Food is a basic need of all human beings,” said Andrea. “Our bodies need to obtain adequate calories and nutrition from the food we eat in order to function properly. When people do not have enough food or only have access to poor quality or reduced variety of food, this negatively affects physical as well as mental health. When people feel well, they are better able to perform their daily activities, including those related to maintaining housing including working, caring for family members and paying rent and other bills.”

The need for both the Food Pantry and the gardens has been steadily increasing as food costs are on the rise and so has Mission First’s programmatic response, adding programs to enhance food security and education.

As an extension of the program, Andrea fosters resident-led programming that allows residents to demonstrate to their neighbors ways to cook with the harvest from the gardens and food from the pantry to make delicious meals. Andrea also hosts a Plant to Plate Discussion Group presenting the nutritious value of different produce or herbs and spices and offering unique ways to use the items.

From a thoughtful donation in 2021 to a robust Healthy living program, the gardens at Imani Park and Amandla Crossing have “grown” to be a key amenity for overall wellness of these communities.

From July 8th-10th, Latisha Marshall, Resident Services Coordinator for Imani Park and Amandla Crossing, attended the National Conference on Ending Homelessness and Capitol Hill Day in Washington, DC. Latisha’s conference attendance was sponsored by the Middlesex County Continuum of Care (CoC) as part of her participation on the CoC’s Consumer Participation Committee.

Latisha said one of the highlights from the first conference day was the Opening Plenary featuring Ann Olivia, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, encouraging attendees to speak out to their elected officials to support our work.

Latisha was able to take that encouragement and get to work immediately! For Capitol Hill Day, Latisha had the opportunity to meet with staff from the offices of Senator Andy Kim, Representative Frank Pallone and Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman to share both her lived experience and the importance of her work with formerly homeless families, addressing the need for maintaining and increasing the funding for homeless service programs and permanent supportive housing.

We appreciate Middlesex County Continuum of Care’s support to ensure Latisha had a seat at the table to speak to policymakers.

Plant to Plate Discussion Group and Garden Activity
at Imani Park

Community Meeting and
"I Can Make a Difference" event
at Amandla Crossing

Community Wellness and Self-Care Day
at Amandla Crossing

Community Wellness and Self-Care Day
Imani Park

Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison provides permanent supportive housing for homeless individuals and families in Middlesex County. Our on-site support services offer our residents access to the resources they need to increase health, independence and housing stability. When you make a donation to Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison, you are helping to ensure that residents have the supports they need to remain successfully housed, get back on their feet and live as thriving members of the community. Your support means so much! 

Donate online by clicking below or by mail to Latisha Marshall, Supportive Housing: Edison, c/o Amandla Crossing, 100 Mitch Snyder Drive, Edison, NJ 08837.

Accepting Food Pantry Donations

Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison is looking for support from readers in donating food items to its Food Pantry. 100% percent of your food donations will help to feed your neighbors and community members. Our program is looking for the following items for the Food Pantry:

• Fresh produce: vegetables, fruits, nuts.
• Whole grains: bread; low sugar cereals; rice (brown or white); grains such as quinoa, oats, barley; pastas (including gluten-free) crackers; granola bars and popcorn.
• Proteins: canned or vacuum packaged meats, such as chicken, tuna, salmon or sardines.
• Vegetarian and vegan-friendly protein: canned or dried beans; nuts and seeds; as well as nut butters such as peanut, almond, sunflower.
• Canned items; soups, stews or pastas. Note: items with pull-tab cans are preferred when possible.
• Beverages: shelf-stable milk (including plant-based), water, fruit juice, vegetable juice, tea, coffee.
• Other Items: Cooking oils, herb/spices, condiments, broths (such as vegetable, chicken, beef, turkey), sugar, honey, syrup, salad dressing, pasta sauce, vinegar.

Items can be purchased directly from our Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison Amazon Wish List or you can contact Andrea Dean at (856) 634-0611, adean@missionfirsthousing.org or Latisha Marshall (445) 267-4384, lmarshall@missionfirsthousing.org, to make arrangements to donate.

Thank you for your consideration!

Do you want to do more than make a donation?

Here are some other great ways for you to help:

• Help secure a matching gift from your employer.
• Host a fundraising event and donate the proceeds to Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison.
• Host an essential items supply drive.
• Introduce your friends, family and colleagues to Mission First Supportive Housing: Edison and encourage them to give.

Do you have ideas you’d like to discuss? Give us a call! We’d love to work with you. For more information, please contact:

• Latisha Marshall, Resident Services Coordinator, 445.267.4384, lmarshall@missionfirsthousing.org
• Moira Rooney, Senior Vice President, Fundraising & Communications, 267.269.3331, mrooney@missionfirsthousing.org

We have great things planned for the future as well! Want to keep up-to-date on what's going on at Edison and Mission First's other work? Follow us on social media: