FOFC Winter Spring - Friends of Foster Children Forever, Inc

Winter/Spring 2014
Volume 2 Issue 1
Make Your
Reservation To Attend!
Saturday, April 26, 2014
6:00 PM
Ritz-Carlton Golf Club
Purchase your
TICKETS TODAY!
$250 per person, $350 per patron
$2500 per table
www.FriendsofFosterChildren.net
or call 239-262-1808
IN THE NEWS
Recent news stories are now posted
on www.FriendsofFosterChildren.net
Be sure to check them out!
• Watch the WINK TV coverage of
GIFT OF GIVING
• Read all the details of the
Preferred Travel SHOWCASE
• View photos from the
COMEDY CABARET
BRINGS LAUGHS AND
RAISES FUNDS
The 13th Annual Comedy
Cabaret, held on December 7th
at the Naples Beach Hotel, had
over 200 guests in attendance.
The night netted over $50,000
plus an additional $10,000 was
donated to provide gifts for 80
local foster children from guests
who purchased a child’s special
Holiday Wish.
From the stage, emcees Chef Brian
Roland and NBC 2 anchor, Krista
Fogelsong, along with founding
member of Friends of Foster
Children, Les Schultzel, M.D.,
helped to stress the importance
of the FFC mission.
Nationally known comedians,
Jane Billings, Ted Alexandro Sarah Guite and
Ted Alexandro and Cory Comedian and Tiffany Billings
Jamie Young
Kahaney, performed to help
raise funds for the cause. Alexandro, a former school teacher, talked about some
very witty experiences with the younger population - kids. Kahaney had attendees
roaring as she talked about aging, her marriage and parenthood.
Honorary Chairs for 2014
Boots & Boogie Bash
Mission
Friends of Foster Children of
SouthwestFlorida(FFC)isa501(c)(3)
nonprofit organization whose
mission is to provide abused,
neglected
and
abandoned
children in Southwest Florida
with the social, educational and
financial support the state does
not.
Comedian - Cory Kahaney with Dr. Les Schultzel
and Karen Porter
Sonya and Brain Sawyer
Sonya and Brian Sawyer will serve as honorary
chairs for the 7th Annual Boots & Boogie Bash.
Sonya is the CFO for Home-Tech and Brian is
with the Collier County Sheriff’s office. FFC
is excited to have the Sawyer’s be part of this
annual fundraiser.
Board of Directors
Doug Campbell, Chair
Suzanne Meiners-Levy, Esq.,
Vice Chair
Dick Westfall, Treasurer
Susan Erb, Secretary
Robert “Buck” Bowen
Kevin Brachle
Jim Derham
Alison K. Douglas, Esq.
PJ Fuerstman-Meyer
Jim L. Henderson
David Scott Madwar, MD
Walter Schacht
Mark R. Schwartz
Founding Directors
Stan Appelbaum
Les Schultzel, MD
Contact Us:
2640 Golden Gate Parkway
Suite 112
Naples, FL 34105
239-262-1808
info@friendsoffosterchildren.net
www.friendsoffosterchildren.net
From The Chair – Doug Campbell
Good things are happening for the children we serve! At
Friends of Foster Children (FFC) for sure, but also in the
state legislature, the court system and other agencies that
provide services to at-risk children.
At FFC, our tutoring program is being further embraced
by the schools. Our tutors have always stuck with
PHOTO BY JASON EASTERLY
kids when they move within the foster care system.
We will now stay with them as they “age-out”(turn 18) or are reunified with
their families.
FFC’s expansion of Project Enrichment services to Hendry and Glades Counties
continues.
Our Collier County Judges are discussing a plan for unifying all family-related
court cases so a family appears before the same judge for dependency, family, drug,
truancy and similar hearings. Good will come of this!
Our legislators, the DCF and their Community Based Care and Case Management
contractors have a number of initiatives under way to improve child safety while
working to keep families together. FFC continues to work with these agencies to
involve trained volunteers to augment the resources in these areas to actually help
keep kids out of the court system.
The Guardian ad Litem Program is the shining example of how much trained
volunteers can help children get through the dependency system as undamaged
as possible. The legislature and governor are great supporters of the GAL program.
As you all know, we don’t speak for anyone except FFC but, I am encouraged that
the momentum for saving children seems to be very significant.
Thanks for supporting FFC as we endeavor to make abused children’s lives more
normal through programs not provided by anyone else.
Executive Director’s Message –
Jane Billings
Programs Supported By:
Turn your tax-deductible auto donation into
cash for abused children! Proceeds from
EVERY donated vehicle help fund Friends of
Foster Children www.nadkids.com
Where does time go? It has been one year since I joined
Friends of Foster Children (FFC) as Executive Director and
we have seen the development of some very exciting new
opportunities:
With the support of Collier County Public Schools and the school
principals, we are now tutoring at least half of our children in
their classroom at school. This has many benefits including:
• Improved communications with the child’s teacher.
• FFC tutors can now teach with the same curriculum and learning format as used
in class.
• The children now have more time afterschool and can participate in the many
personal enrichment opportunities available with the support of FFC.
We are expanding our current tutoring program to become a more complete Academic
Mentoring Program (AMP-UP). Our goal being to offer a continuum of educational
care (including tutoring and mentoring) that will follow the child beyond the closure
of their dependency case.
Working together with key partners including Collier County Schools and Children’s
Network of SWFL the goal will be to transition our children from elementary through
middle school, to the highly successful Destination Graduation project offered in high
school by Workforce Development.
We need your support as we strive to become a constant academic presence in our
children’s lives. We seek to be preventive and provide the help in the early years, when
it is needed most. Please join us as we move forward and make 2014 a year where our
children can begin to discover their individual potential.
Gift of Giving
The 13th annual Gift of Giving shopping
spree, made possible by Germain Automotive
Partnership, allowed nearly 100 foster
children to shop for Christmas gifts at
Walmart on December 14th.
It’s not a bike! That’s what
Daniel Weidenbruch and James say anyway
Foster children, between the ages of five and
18, received $100 each to shop for anyone
they wanted, including parents, friends or
teachers. And as a bonus, each child was given
an additional $25 to purchase something for
themselves. FFC arranged for the children to
be part of the event and volunteers from the
Rotary Club of Naples assisted each child with
their shopping endeavors. After a morning
of power shopping, everyone proceeded to
Germain Toyota for lunch and gift wrapping.
All in all, the day was exhausting but incredibly
rewarding for everyone.
Anthony sees the perfect gift
Stan Appelbaum and
Nicole Germain Greene
Circle of Friends Luncheon
FFC held their inaugural Circle of Friends luncheon on
February 25th at Bay Colony Golf Club to honor the
extraordinary work of Stan Appelbaum and the Honorable
Daniel R. Monaco.
The FFC story began in 1999, when the FFC founders, the
Appelbaum’s and the Schultzel’s, sought to fill the gaps in the
state system that served foster children by supporting a host
of programs that included; tutoring, after school activities,
summer camps and personal enrichment opportunities -anything any “normal” child would have.
Les Schultzel, Cathy and Stan Appelbaum,
Honorable Daniel R. Monaco, Ann Monaco,
Honorable Hugh D. Hayes and Doug Campbell
Dr. Les Schultzel, a Founding Director of FFC, paid tribute
to Stan Appelbaum, recipient of the “Friend for a Lifetime”
award, for his extraordinary volunteer contributions to
benefit the lives of foster children.
The Honorable Hugh D. Hayes introduced the “Friend of
Distinction” honoree, the Honorable Daniel R. Monaco.
Between 1998 and 2008, Judge Monaco presided over 300 adoptions in Collier County. Two of the FFC staff members began
their families with adoptions facilitated by Judge Monaco and as a surprise to him, these children; Tiffany Billings and Alec
Bieling, presented his award.
Friends of Foster Children
2640 Golden Gate Parkway, Suite 112
Naples, FL 34105
PRESORTED
FIRST-CLASS MAIL
U.S. POSTAGE PAID
NAPLES, FL
PERMIT NO. 35
Preferred Travel of Naples
Preferred Travel of Naples President and CEO Wilma
Boyd selected FFC to be the beneficiary of their eighth
annual travel showcase - Explore the World. The event
was held on February 10th at The Club Pelican Bay. Each
year, Preferred Travel of Naples donates all proceeds from
the travel showcase to a charitable organization and this
year, more than $23,000 was raised for FFC.
Olga Placeres, Wilma Boyd, Jane Billings and Doug Campbell
Naples Woman’s Club
FFC received a $9,000 check from the Naples Woman’s
Club on February 26. The check presentation was made
possible by a fundraiser held by the Naples Woman’s
Club - The Kitchen Tour 2014. The event showcased
select exquisite kitchens located in prestigious Port
Mark Schwartz – Friends of Foster Children (FFC) Board Member,
Debra McInnis – Kitchen Tour Chair, Lee Kraus – Naples Woman’s Club
President, Jane Billings – FFC Executive Director, and Doug Campbell –
FFC Board Chair
Royal homes. The event took place on January 22,
2014 and benefitted several local charities.