WJCS 2022 Gala Honors Mariquita Blumberg and NYS Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins

Westchester Jewish Community Services (WJCS) has announced that it will be honoring WJCS Board President Mariquita Blumberg and New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins on April 5th at the Brae Burn Country Club in Purchase, and online at 6:30 PM. Pam Eisinger Zaslav will give a special introduction to the Senator. Proceeds from the Gala will be used to support programs that serve 20,000 Westchester residents each year, of all ages and backgrounds, who face struggles relating to mental health, trauma, disability, aging, and  developmental, educational, and social problems affecting children and youth.

Founded in 1943, WJCS is the largest provider of outpatient licensed community-based mental health services in Westchester and one of the largest human service organizations in the county.

For the past ten years, Mariquita Blumberg has passionately supported WJCS, becoming chair of the Marketing committee and serving on various other committees including the Children, Youth & Family and Technology Committees. She served as the Treasurer of the board and, for the last three years, as the President of the Board. She was honored to receive the UJA Agency Trustee Leadership Award in 2018 for her work at WJCS.

Mariquita has also served on the board of the Greenburgh Library for ten years and is also currently on the Edgemont Board of Education. Professionally Mariquita is an executive coach and organizational consultant, supporting executives in small and mid-sized companies as they scale their business, their organization and their executive team all at once. She attended Massachusetts Institute of Technology, earning a B.A in economics and got her Masters in Organization Development (MSOD) from the AU/NTL program at American University.

NYS Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has been widely recognized as a trailblazer in local and state government and champion for progressive action. In 2012, she became the first woman, and African American woman, to lead a New York State legislative conference. In 2019, she shattered the glass ceiling when her peers elected her as Temporary President and Majority Leader of the State Senate.

Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins oversaw the passage of historic and transformative legislation on issues including voting reforms, gun safety, women’s rights and health care, immigration and DREAMers, the LGBTQ community, the justice system, and sexual harassment in the workplace. Additionally, the Senate Majority under her leadership passed the most comprehensive and aggressive climate change legislation in the nation, and the strongest tenant protections and affordable housing package in state history.

Andrea Stewart-Cousins was born and raised in New York to parents who encouraged a life grounded in education and service. These values, along with her strong belief in advocating for the underserved and championing the needs of working families, have distinguished her as a public servant and progressive leader.

First elected to the State Senate in 2006, Senator Stewart-Cousins currently represents Greenburgh, Scarsdale, and parts of White Plains, New Rochelle, and Yonkers.

“We are delighted and honored to salute Mariquita Blumberg and NYS Senator Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins at our 2022 WJCS Gala,” said WJCS CEO Seth Diamond. Every day Mariquita and Senator Stewart-Cousins demonstrate the power of commitment and the power of the individual to create positive change. It is only because of individuals like Mariquita and the Senator that WJCS can offer 80+ programs, both in-person and virtually, to ensure that no Westchester resident need to struggle alone. We are here to support the community and we are so proud to have such stellar honorees who represent the best of our community.”