To address the new state office, Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado travels to Rochester

Rochester, New York – On Tuesday, Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado of New York traveled to Rochester to talk about the state’s recently established Office of Service and Civic Engagement.

Governor Kathy Hochul established the agency earlier this year with the primary objective of attempting to bring local communities together through various public service initiatives.

“The epidemic of loneliness breeds intolerance, leading to hate and ultimately violence,” Delgado said. “The Office of Service and Civic Engagement is in many ways the antidote.”

“How do we get people to see their shared humanity through service?” he continued. “… I am now charged with creating a holistic plan across the state to engage with our young people in particular … to center themselves in love.”

Delgado talked about the connection between violent crime and socioeconomic disparity as well.

“Steps must be taken on the ground to create opportunities for our young people to enrich themselves in more healthy, organic ways,” he said. “If you’re growing up in a space that has intergenerational poverty, you are trapped under conditions that predate you.

“It is incumbent upon us as a society to understand those conditions,” Delgado added. “I think we are doing our young people a disservice as well if we don’t actually look at the root problems.”

In addition, Delgado was able to join us this morning on Good Day Rochester for an in-studio interview where he discussed the effort and plans for this new state office and offered his support for a few urgent issues that the Rochester community is facing.