Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-01-24
Cuno H. Rudolph, Retiring
President, Is Praised for
Welfare Work.
BETTER UNDERSTANDING
URGED BY DR.. KERRY
Secretary Relates Increase in Work
During First Year Under
Community Chest.

1
duties as president Of the Associated
! Charities.
Mr.. Jennings was chosen without OPP
position last night at the forty-eighth
| anniversary meeting of the organiza-
ton in the Young Women's Christian
Association. Resolutions were adopted
commencing Cuno H. Rudolph, the re-
firing president, for his welfare work
activities.
Corcoran Thorn was selected as vice
president, John B. Larner as treasurer,
| Herbert A. Poole as assistant treasurer
and Walter S. Ufford as general Sec
rotary. The following were reelected
members of the board of directors for
terms OF three years: Edward F. Col
laday. DR.. George M. Kober, John B.
Larner, Mrs. e: x. Morris. John j..
O'Connor, Miss Florence p. Spofford,
DR.. Arson Phelps Stokes, Mrs. Sidney
F. Taliaferro, Mr.. Jennings and Mr..
Rudolph.
Four Named to Board.
-Four persons were chosen to serve on
ton. They are Mrs. Frederick w. Nc
| Reynolds, Arthur Deerin Call, Richard
w. Hynson and Frank w. Persons.
An appeal for q better understanding
between members of the various social
classes was made by DR.. William j.
Kerby, professor of sociology of Catfo-
lie University. I'm view," he declared,
"of the impressive force and effective
ness of all thinkers, teachers. lay, re-
| ligious and civic leaders who are So
cially minded and who endeavor as
they may to interpret the claims Of de-
feated social classes upon our civiliza-
| ton, the term social worker should
hardly be confined to those who serve
the poor personally. We should asso-
ciate these with that impressive COM
pany who are working in their several
fields beyond the field Of charity into
the field of justice and culture.
'All of these stand midway between
those whom our civilization has exalt-
ed and those whom our civilization has
| laid low. The successful and the fall
| ures of social life constitute two worlds.
| Each speaks its own language. lives by
its own philosophy, yields In large meas
ure TO its own environment. Socially
minded thinkers, teachers and workers
are the interpreters Of each world to
the other. ,,
eff the poor were alert, thoughtful
and interested in larger social life, the
work of these interpreters would be in
decd discouraging. We would have to
interpret to the poor Q state that fails
lamentably to secure for them effective
| justice; a form of organized industry
which inSures no income or insufficient
income or income at excessive sacrifice
to them; a culture which is sharp to
hear the music Of life AMI deaf to the
cry of its agony; property system that
leaves so many of them without prop
erty, without the hope of 1t.
Poor Weigh Only Needs.
"Those who are capable and strong and
trained can understand the limitations
Of social institutions and the stern mys-
teries of their failure. The poor are
concerned with the days need and not
with the days philosophy or social
structure. They look out upon life from
the standpoint of their defeat and the
distressing feelings that their defeat
engenders.
Mr.. Ufford spoke of the marked in
crease in the work of the society during
/ its first year under the Community
Chest, when the number of families in
creased from 1,791 given care and serv-
ice in 1928 to 2,3S1 in 1929, a jump
Of almost 331s per cent. In these 2,39l
families were l0,190 individuals, of
| whom $500 were children under 16
years of age. This number Of children
Is said to be at least one-twenty- fifth
of all the children in Washington.
The speaker told Of the source from
which applications were received. About
|
make their needs known, while the re-
mainder were referred either by indi-
vidualS or by other social agencies.
Showing the status of some Of the fam
lilies, he said Ash were those of widows
and $40 Of deserted wives.
Unemployment II Problem.
Unemployment was one of the most
| serious problems met with, appearing
as q factor with one or more members
of nearly half the families given service
AS an aid In meeting this problem, the
visitors reported $50 individuals found
temporary employment and 253 employ
ment that should be more or less per-
manent. The biggest handicap, how
ever. was illness, which affected 1,641
Of the 1891 families.
Bad housing under insanitary condi-
lions continues to be serious matter in
the District of Columbia with Associated
Charities families" the speaker said
Three hundred and forty-four such
families were so reported as suffering
from insanitary living conditions and OF
these 242 were removed to better quar-
tiers or neighborhoodS and in 81 in
stances bad housing conditions were i'm
proved.
"The Associated Charities is handi-
capped for lack of a trained dietitian
or visiting housekeeper on its staff. This
is because of lack Of funds. The dem
onstration made by All Souls Unitarian
Church some years ago through the
Associated Charities convinced the So
ciety of the need and value Of such a
professional worker, but unfortunately
the budget of the society since that
time has not been suf1cient to continue
the position Notwithstanding the WIS.,
itors' report, 10 homes benefited by
training through their own efforts OF
that of volunteers.
Family DesertiOn Is Troublesome.
AS shown by figures cited above, fam
ily desertion continued to be one Of the
most serious domestic problems with
which the Associated Charities is called
to deal. In its efforts to bring the de-
serting husband to book the visitors
obtained A support orders through the
court and instituted 108 searches to To-
cate the deserving husband.
+ Alcoholism was present in approx
nately / in 10 families as q factor Of
dependency and tuberculosis in almost
an equal number of families.
1.-THE increase in the amount of finan'
cial assistance was greater than in any
previous year, amounting to sos, 757. SO
as against $66, 997 go the year before, ar
increase OF almost 40 per cent. This re-
lief was expended upon 1908 families
showing that about half of those who
come to the Associated Charities are
found to require some other service
rather than relief such as medical at.
tention. legal aid. family adjustment
In closing, Mr.. IIdord praised tn,