Joy Solomon, Esq. | 2017 National Crime Victims' Service Awards Tribute Video

Joy Solomon, Esq., The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Center for Elder Abuse Prevention, HebrEw Home at Riverdale, Riverdale, New York: Elder justice is a whole range of things that includes making sure that older people are empowered and safe. I was a prosecutor at the Manhattan DA's office, and one of the gaps in services that I saw was that if they needed shelter that was safe, older adults had nowhere to go. I really wanted to create an elder abuse shelter, and the Weinberg Foundation decided to give us a try.

DANIEL REINGOLD, MSW, JD, PRESIDENT AND CEO, RIVERSPRING HEALTH: Joy has put together an extraordinary team, a powerful group of people both in the social work and legal field, and more recently bringing in a public health professional.

JOY SOLOMON: Everything that we do is about meeting people who have been harmed where they are. It's not just they need legal support. They also need therapeutic support. Therapeutic support includes art therapy, pet therapy, use of gardens to help them nurture and grow.

DANIEL REINGOLD: What's so rewarding about the Weinberg Center initiative is that we've created a model that, A, does not require bricks and mortar, and, B, makes use of existing resources.

JOY SOLOMON: We are so pleased that over these last 13 years we've had 14 other nursing homes that have agreed to this model. Education and awareness is huge. We've trained Meals on Wheels practitioners, pharmacists, faith-based leaders. We forged a relationship with the union that supports the doormen. They see who comes in and out of buildings. I love being able to help people see light, to share their stories and give them hope. All of our work is geared to strengthen victim-survivors.