Dear Fostering Connections Supporters,
May is Foster Care Awareness Month, a time to raise awareness of foster care. Currently, there are over 391,000 youth across the United States in foster care- 1,676 of these youth are in our five county region.
To commemorate Foster Care Awareness Month, we will be raising awareness throughout the month of May on our social media channels and raising funds to support our programming at our Night of the Arts fundraiser on Saturday, May 18 at Friday Musicale. It is going to be an incredible evening celebrating our milestone 5th anniversary of service to North Florida and raising funds to support our growing programs for youth and families. Volunteers are needed for the event. It is a great opportunity for students in need of service hours. There’s still time to purchase your tickets. If you are unable to attend in person, you can still give support through bidding on silent auction items. Learn more in this month’s newsletter.
Alongside Foster Care Awareness Month and Night of the Arts, we have a full month of programming with three Foster/Adoptive Family Meet Up events and our Greater Jacksonville Florida Youth Shine Student Interest meeting. Our team is getting ready for a busy summer of Career Readiness Academy sessions. There is high demand this year for our program. Our Jacksonville and DeLand classes are at full capacity and our Palatka class is at 90%. The demand is so great that we will bringing back our St. Augustine class this year. We are so excited to meet our students! There are numerous volunteer opportunities for our Career Readiness Academy sessions this summer to mentor and support our students. Learn more in this months’ newsletter.
Thank you for your continued support and partnership. I look forward to seeing you soon!
Warm Regards,
Aubrie Simpson-Gotham
Founder & CEO, Fostering Connections