Cathi Rendfrey is the Director of the Women’s Opportunity Center (WOC) located at the YMCA of Burlington County. The Center made its home at the YMCA in 1991 and serves women in Burlington and Camden Counties.

The WOC is a grant-funded program made possible by the New Jersey Division on Women, Department of Community Affairs that supports displaced homemakers – women who have lost their primary source of income due to divorce, separation, death, disability of a spouse, or a spouse who has been deployed in the military – and who must therefore obtain or upgrade their skills for transition into the paid labor market. WOC provides a broad spectrum of holistic and comprehensive free services that include counseling, support groups, life skills workshops, referrals, education, and training to help these women locate meaningful employment and become self-sufficient.

Cathi manages the overall operation of the WOC and supervises its staff and volunteers. When the WOC first opened its doors, the program was given “closet-sized” space in which to operate from. Cathi was instrumental in obtaining a larger space. She established a computer resource center to provide women with access to computers and the Internet for training and job searches. Over the last four years, Cathi secured $50,000 in educational awards for Center women who are in education/training through private and corporate donations.  Under the umbrella of the WOC, she headed the successful Deployed Military Assistance Spousal Grant. The Center helped more than 200 National Guard families with their living expenses from grants totaling $450,000.

Cathi voluntarily serves as the Legislative Liaison for the Displaced Homemakers Network of New Jersey, Inc., which advocates for 15 centers statewide. In this role, Cathi meets with legislators on an ongoing basis to educate them about displaced homemakers and their families. She testifies each year before the Assembly and Senate to keep the Center’s funding included in the Governor’s State budget. She is a tireless advocate for women’s rights.  She organizes letter writing campaigns and visits the Capitol to meet with government leaders.

Cathi is the recipient of many awards including the 2006 Displaced Home-makers Network of NJ Award, the Women’s Way Award and the 2000 Governor’s Outstanding Woman Award.

Cathi and her husband reside in Burlington County. They have two daughters and four grandchildren.
 For more information on the WOC, please visit www.woc-bc.org.