Meet Irma, one of the 50 Faces of NewBridge

Irma felt trapped, living in a tiny one-bedroom apartment with her three children in a Paterson neighborhood where drug dealing and shootings were commonplace.

“It was like being in a cage. I didn’t want that for my kids. I wanted something better,” said Irma, who was struggling with health problems, including depression, asthma and high blood pressure.

The Mental Health Association in Passaic County in 2008 put Irma in touch with NewBridge Services. A NewBridge social worker visited Irma at her apartment and arranged for the family to move into its Clifton Family Housing, a two-family house serving families in which a parent has a mental illness.

Irma and her children moved into a spacious three-bedroom apartment in a quiet neighborhood. “I love it! It’s so peaceful,” said the 48 year old, who receives federal rental assistance. “I can go out without worrying that someone is going to hurt me or any of my kids.”

Irma’s sons and daughter had to get used to the quiet, but they came to appreciate their new home – especially the added space, she said.

The Clifton Family Housing has been so successful that NewBridge, in partnership with the Mental Health Association in Passaic County, is adding six more units. “I believe in NewBridge because…if it weren’t for them, I would still be living in that hellhole. I love my apartment and I hope I can stay here forever.”

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Irma was among The 50 Faces of NewBridge, introduced in 2013 to celebrate our 50th anniversary.