Our People, Our Neighborhood
Through our core programs and a full complement of support services, Mercy Center addresses four critical problems facing people who live in the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx:
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unemployment and economic poverty
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violent and oppressive behaviors in families and the community
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overburdened and underperforming schools
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the powerlessness and estrangement that accompanies the isolation of the immigrant experience
Snapshot of our People
Fiscal Year 2019 (7/1/2018 - 6/30/2019)
Countries of Origin
Our participants come from 50 countries and 5 continents.

Household Incomes
75% of our participants have an annual income of less than $21,000.

Education Levels
50% of our participants have completed less than a high school level education.


Mercy Center is home to one of the poorest Congressional Districts (15th) in the United States.
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Seventy-five percent of participant families live on annual household incomes of less than $21,000 and close to 80% live on incomes below the poverty line.
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Forty-one percent receive some form of government assistance (Food Stamps, Supplemental Security Income, Housing, Medicaid, etc.)
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They represent 50 countries.
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Most are Hispanic (90%) families, with seventy-five percent having emigrated from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Honduras, or Ecuador.
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Over a quarter of participants have never attended high school and 40% have not graduated, often because of the responsibility or caring for young children.
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Literacy levels vary, and work histories are largely in low-paying service industries. Over fifty percent work in the Home Health Aide/Home Attendant, Cleaning, and Restaurant fields.