Charity Begins at Home, Daniel Straus Knows that Well

When CareOne CEO Daniel Straus saw the impact of Hurricane Sandy last fall, he, as many other people of good-will did, looked hard to find the appropriate way to help victims.  Groups such as the Met Council offered food, Kars for Kids gave coats to kids, thousands of other people and charities donated whatever they could to people who lost homes, needed heat, and a hand up.  Straus did not want to be just another face in the crowd, and knowing that so many angles were already being handled, he decided to look inward and help with all of the above to the people who meant the most to him and his family.

Many of the workers at his Careone facilities live or lived in the disaster struck areas, and they were deeply affected.  "What a better way to help," he thought, "than to make the people at Careone as whole as we can get them."  He called his friends, one being the philanthropist Raphael Benaroya, and asked for help.  His center established a small application that anyone working for Careone who suffered losses would fill out.  The documents were so that Straus could assess just how much was needed.  Once compiled, they knew they needed about $1 million.  Straus and Benaroya donated personally and the final donations will be distributed on April 24 at his King George facility in New Jersey. 

All told, about 100 employees and their families will be made whole from the damages.  "We can't make it all better, nor take away the hurt and emotional losses, and we can't replace what had intrinsic value to individuals and families, but we can help our friends and our collective families rebuild and offer a fresh start," Straus said.

At the ceremony, Daniel E. Straus will distribute $30,000 to community-based relief funds: $15,000 each to the Hope For Highlands and Middletown Disaster Relief Fund.

Here is a man who knows where charity begins and puts his efforts into making sure that the people who help him get where he is get what they need and deserve.