Lynda M. Murphy, Esq., President

Michael G. St. Jacques II, Esq., First Vice President

Penny Heller, Second Vice President

John C. Castronuovo, Secretary

Garth E. Rosenkrance,Treasurer

Matthew Constantine,

LCSW, Chief Executive Officer

Cristina AraujoSean P. Bresnan

Heather B. FergusonMari Frankel

Karen Johnson-YoungJames E. Larschan

James LlendeJohn P. Marasco

Jay R. MarcusChristine Oberlink

William B. Peterson

BOARD OFDIRECTORS

Adopt-A-Family is a 501 (C)(3) not-for-profit, charitable organization

established in 1983. Our mission is to strengthen families with children in their efforts to achieve stability and

self-sufficiency by providing access to all-encompassing services.

ADOPT-A-FAMILY’S

ADOPT-A-FAMILYof the Palm Beaches, Inc.

SPRING 2015

LEWIS CENTER TEAMThe Senator Philip D. Lewis Center, a collaborative effort between several Palm Beach Coun-

ty homeless service providers, is the centralized point of entry for our county’s individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Adopt-A-Family’s Lewis Center team manages the family component. Through the use of the Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool

(SPDAT), Lewis Center staff are able to assist those families who are most in need while collecting data that is meaningful to address homelessness in our community.

Adopt-A-Family’s Lewis Center team is comprised of Navigators, Housing Specialists, Family Advocates, and Mental Health support staff.

The Navigation Team is made up of the frontline staff conducting initial interviews and assess-ments to determine which services best meet the families’ needs. Depending on availability, families may be placed in an emergency shelter/hotel, reunited with family members, or referred to community-based organizations. If a family scores a six or higher on the initial screening, the family will come in person to meet with a navigator to provide documentation show-ing identity, income and members of household information. If someone is close to scoring a six (eligibility threshold for Rapid Re-Housing), nav-igators will ensure the families are answering all questions as diligently and truthfully as possible so they may receive the services they deserve. If a family meets the criteria to be assisted with housing, they next meet with a Housing Specialist to work toward this goal. The team receives 30 to 50 calls each day from families in need.

NAVIGATION TEAM

Housing that is both safe and affordable is a rarity in Palm Beach County. The primary goal of the Housing Specialist is to work with families, landlords, and community partners to identify safe and affordable housing. When a family is suc-

All families who qualify for services at the Lewis Center receive case management from a Family Advocate. The Family Advocate addresses bar-riers to housing. They also assist families with resume building, budgeting, and identifying stable employment. One of the major barriers families face falls within the area of mental well-ness. Family Advocates work with mental health providers in the county to coordinate referrals for our families in need.

Additionally, we have a Licensed Mental Health Professional (LMHC) who is trained to perform assessments and mental health evaluations for our families to ensure they are properly address-ing mental health barriers. The LMHC meets with families after the navigation process is completed. The Family Clinical Supervisor and Director of Clinical Services are also available to provide mental health assessments and support.

HOUSING SPECIALIST TEAM

FAMILY ADVOCATE TEAM

MENTAL HEALTH TEAM

cessfully housed, the Housing Specialist provides a landlord/tenant rights book as well as guidance on how to be a good tenant.

We want to say, “Thank you!” to our Lewis Center team for all you do in our Palm Beach County Community!

THE GREAT CHARITY CHALLENGE 2015 RECAP

BALLENISLES CHARITIES FOUNDATION HELPS 200 HOMELESS CHILDREN

S A N T A SHOPPE

2014 HOLIDAY ADOPTER

PROGRAM

On Saturday, February 7, over 100 costumed equestrian riders teamed up with 34 local charities to compete for a share of the $1.5 million prize money. The Great Charity Challenge, presented by Fidelity Investments®, was held at the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center in Wellington, FL. Adopt-A-Family’s sponsor team, Newstead Farm, finished in 11th place, earning our agency a $30,000 donation to help Palm Beach County families in need.

BallenIsles Charities Foundation awarded Adopt-A-Family $20,000 to help 200 homeless children. This generous grant will allow Adopt-A-Family to give personal hygiene items, paper products, school supplies, and school uniforms to children experiencing homelessness when they accompany their families to the Lewis Center. Nydia Sabugo-Marrou, the Family Clinical Supervisor at the Lewis Center, commented, “With this grant, our Case Managers are able to go shopping with the families to purchase the necessities. There is nothing like experiencing a child’s joy at picking out her own backpack, one that ‘looks just like my friend’s backpack at school’.” This grant not only gives children important school supplies, it allows them to attend school with pride and dignity. We are so grateful to everyone at the BallenIsles Charities Foundation.

Santa Shoppe is a unique Adopt-A-Family holiday event in which children are not only given a gift from Santa, but they also get to go shopping for gifts to give their siblings and parents. They are very excited to personally select gifts for their family members, wrap the gifts themselves, and put them under their tree at home. This year’s event helped more than 240 children from AAF programs and 80 volunteers (including 40 from the Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County) assisted these children on their shopping adventure. We’d like to thank AAF’s Santa Shoppe Co-Chairs, Lisa Raymond and Leandra Silfa, who made it yet another special year.

Kim Pyle, Holiday Adopter Coordinator.

Holiday Adopter 2014 was one of our most successful years in the program’s his-tory. Our adopters generously donated nearly $30,000, with an additional $2,800 in holiday gift cards, to our families in need. In total, 292 children from 139 fami-lies benefitted from the program this year. Our donors came from as far south as Boca Raton and as far north as St. Augustine. Our families received bikes, beds, clothing, and gift cards that enabled them to have a special holiday this year. We want to thank all of our generous donors for making this year a special one.

PA L M B E AC H C O U N T Y

DUCKY DERBY RECAP

The Point-In-Time Count is conducted once every two years to identify the prevalence of homelessness in Palm Beach County. The voluntary surveys conducted during the count provide valuable information that helps to identify unmet needs of Palm Beach County’s homeless population.  The results of the Point-In-Time count are integral to ongoing efforts in our county to advocate for additional funding and resources for homeless families and individuals. Adopt-A-Family has historically played a mean-ingful role in executing the Point-In-Time Count in Palm Beach County. Housing Stabilization Program Manager, Shayene Weatherspoon, administered Adopt-A-Family’s volunteer efforts during the count. We are pleased to report that over half of Adopt-A-Family employees volunteered to participate in this year’s count.

On March 8, 2015, over 300 people gathered for our 3rd Annual Ducky Derby at CityPlace. Adopt-A-Fam-ily sold nearly 6,000 ducks to benefit Palm Beach County families in need. We want to thank our sponsors who made this event a success: RBC Wealth Management, Publix Supermarkets Charities, Edge-water Enterprises, LLC, Sue and Dale Cliff, Smith Barney, Stuart and Shelby Development, Valley Na-tional, Ron and Debbie Parr, Novak Druce Connolly Bove + Quigg LLP, Tauber Real Estate Services, LLC, Diva Duck, and Alice and Jim Scanlon.

We also want to thank CityPlace for hosting us and West Palm Beach Fire Rescue Station #4 for filling our giant duck pond. The incredible work of our volunteers that day allowed us to sell an additional 1,100 ducks. Finally, we want to thank everyone who purchased ducks and helped support Adopt-A-Family’s efforts to strength-en families with children in their efforts to achieve self-sufficiency. Last but not least, we must thank our Special Events committee and Adopt-A-Family’s Layren Espi-

nosa. We could not have done this without you. Thank you for making it a tremendous success.

POINT-IN-TIME COUNT

A candid shot of Adopt-A-Family staff volunteers at a Point-In-Time designated site at the Caring Kitchen in Delray Beach.

More than 250 guests attended the 30th Annual Tree Lighting Celebration this past December 2nd at the beautiful Sailfish Club of Florida. The hard work of the 2014 Tree Lighting Committee with Co-chairmen Beth Hennessy and Didi Smith brought in more than $400,000 to support Adopt-A-Family’s programs and services. Guests were greeted by holiday carols sung by The King’s Academy Choir. Famous for its astonishing display of orchids, themed baskets, and holiday décor, the silent auction room left everyone in awe. The evening also featured a delectable seated dinner and an exciting live auction. Miss Hennessy and Mrs. Smith, as well as the board and staff of Adopt-A-Family, are grateful to all the committee members who made this event a con-tinued success. We are also very appreciative of the many donors who contributed and bid on items for the auctions. The night was filled with great energy and generosity that successfully kicked off the 2014 Holiday Season.

The 4th Annual Better Ball Invitational will be taking place on May 1, 2015 at the prestigious Pine Tree Golf Club in Boynton Beach, FL. The cost to partic-ipate is $500 per player or $2,000 per

SAVE THE DATE:

4TH ANNUAL BETTER BALL

IMPA

CT

CO

RNER

I N V I TAT I O N A L

GREAT GIVE PALM BEACH & MARTIN COUNTIES

Great Give Palm Beach & Martin Counties is a 24-hour online giving event led by the Community Foundation for Palm Beach and Martin Counties, United Way of

Palm Beach County, and United Way of Martin County. This event is designed to raise as much money as possible for local nonprofits in a single day. Last year, Adopt-A-Family earned a 7th place finish for total unique gifts. With your help, we can make 2015 even better. Follow Adopt-A-Family on our social media channels to participate in contests and to receive special event information.

MAY 5–65PM–5PM

TREE

2014LIGHTING

foursome. The event will begin with a 12:00 PM lunch followed by a shotgun start at 1:30 PM. For sponsorship or tournament information, please contact Matt Constantine at 561.253.1361 x104/email: mconstantine@adoptafamilypbc.org or Sean Dollard at 561.253.1361 x139/email: sdollard@adoptafamilypbc.org.

their children were served by Adopt-A-Family Holiday Programs this year.

M O R E T H A N 300 FAMILIES &

This is the most raised on a single night in our agency’s history.

OV E R $ 4 0 0 , 0 0 0 WA SRASIED FOR TREE LIGHTING 2014.

received childcare through community- based referrals.

In the past year at the Lewis Center,228 CHILDREN FROM 112 HOUSEHOLDS

has offered a total of

Since November 2013,PROJECT GROW

18 STEAM speakerp r e s e n t a t i o n sto the students in Project Grow. The speakers ranged from mechanical and civil engineers to a dentist, nurse & cryptologist.

follow us on social media with the hashtag #giveaaf15 for up to date information.

www.facebook.com/AAFPBCTwitter @aafpbc

PLEASE

YES!

HELP OUR

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Name (please print):

Phone: Email:

City:

Address:

Exp. Date

Signature

FAMILIES

I would like to make a difference in the lives of homeless families and their children by contributing the following:

Who We Help• Homeless families• Income–challenged, working families at risk of becoming homeless• Children ages Kindergarten–5th grade in need of quality after–school activities

Adopt-A-Family of the Palm Beaches, Inc.1712 Second Avenue NorthLake Worth, FL 33460-3210Phone: (561) 253-1361www.adoptafamilypbc.org

Please remember Adopt-A-Family in your will.

NON-PROFITORGANIZATIONU.S. Postage

PAIDWest Palm Bch., FL

Permit No. 529

Please mail to: 1712 Second Avenue NorthLake Worth, FL 33460Give online at www.adoptafamilypbc.org

Make your tax-deductible contribution to Adopt-A-Family of the Palm Beaches

A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352)WITHIN THE STATE. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE. REGISTRATION #CH2076