Changes

Approximately a third of Laredo residents live at the poverty level,<ref name=hunger/> but donations from citizens and business groups beyond Bethany's budget have enabled the settlement house to expand its operations. For instance, in 2008, Mrs. Kazen received a grant from United Parcel Service to help the organization establish services for the unemployed.<ref name=hunger/>

Approximately a third of Laredo residents live at the poverty level,<ref name=hunger/> but donations from citizens and business groups beyond Bethany's budget have enabled the settlement house to expand its operations. For instance, in 2008, Mrs. Kazen received a grant from United Parcel Service to help the organization establish services for the unemployed.<ref name=hunger/>

Bethany House remained open through [[Christmas]] 2009 with additional mattresses placed inside the cafeteria to meet high-capacity needs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pro8news.com/news/local/80098072.html|title=Bethany House keeps their {sic} doors open over the holidays|publisher=KGNS-TV ([[NBC]] in Laredo)|date=December 24, 2009|accessdate=January 5, 2010}}</ref> Each year Bethany House serves some 300,000 meals and more than five million pounds of food.<ref name=hunger/>

Bethany House remained open through [[Christmas]] 2009 with additional mattresses placed inside the cafeteria to meet high-capacity needs.<ref>"Bethany House keeps their {sic} doors open over the holidays," KGNS-TV ([[NBC]] in Laredo), December 24, 2009.</ref> Each year Bethany House serves some 300,000 meals and more than 5,000,000 pounds of food.<ref name=hunger/>

In January 2014, Bethany House unveiled its Barbara A. Kazen Center for Hope, a new complex which provides nine additional transitional housing units for needy families. The $2.3 million project encompasses approximately ten thousand square feet.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lmtonline.com/articles/2014/01/18/front/news/doc52d8a65d2364a863428849.txt|title=Philip Balli, Bethany House celebrates expansion|date=January 16, 2014|publisher=''The Laredo Morning Tines''|accessdate=January 18, 2014}}</ref>

In January 2014, Bethany House unveiled its Barbara A. Kazen Center for Hope, a new complex which provides nine additional transitional housing units for needy families. The $2.3 million project encompasses approximately ten thousand square feet.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lmtonline.com/articles/2014/01/18/front/news/doc52d8a65d2364a863428849.txt|title=Philip Balli, Bethany House celebrates expansion|date=January 16, 2014|publisher=''The Laredo Morning Times''|accessdate=January 18, 2014}}</ref>

The current Bethany House administrator is Fanny Finkler Stavorowski of Laredo.<ref>Fanny Stavorowski - Director for Bethany House of Laredo, Inc. (corporationwiki.com), accessed May 1, 2021.</ref>In 2014, she received the national Jefferson Awards Foundation honors in [[Washington, D.C.]], for her twenty-five years of work on behalf of the homeless through Bethany House. By 2013, more than 361,000 meals were served at Bethany House. Stavorowski contributed toward these efforts through her fundraising for the organization.<ref>"Jefferson Awards Foundation: Laredoan honored at national ceremony," ''The Laredo Morning Times,'' June 19, 2014, pp. 1, 12A.</ref> In June 2015, Manuel Santos received the Jefferson honors for his thirty years of employment at Bethany House. Santos, who worked in food delivery for the Bethany House home-bound program, also garnered a [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis]] Award for his personal commitment to positive change in the community.<ref>"Santos recognized for public service," ''The Laredo Morning Time,'' June 19, 2015, p. 1.</ref>

The current Bethany House administrator is Fanny Finkler Stavorowski of Laredo.<ref>Fanny Stavorowski - Director for Bethany House of Laredo, Inc. (corporationwiki.com), accessed May 1, 2021.</ref>In 2014, she received the national Jefferson Awards Foundation honors in [[Washington, D.C.]], for her twenty-five years of work on behalf of the homeless through Bethany House. By 2013, more than 361,000 meals were served at Bethany House. Stavorowski contributed toward these efforts through her fundraising for the organization.<ref>"Jefferson Awards Foundation: Laredoan honored at national ceremony," ''The Laredo Morning Times,'' June 19, 2014, pp. 1, 12A.</ref> In June 2015, Manuel Santos received the Jefferson honors for his thirty years of employment at Bethany House. Santos, who worked in food delivery for the Bethany House home-bound program, also garnered a [[Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis]] Award for his personal commitment to positive change in the community.<ref>"Santos recognized for public service," ''The Laredo Morning Time,'' June 19, 2015, p. 1.</ref>