Children in the 2010 Heart Gallery Awaiting Forever Families

Have you seen the beautiful children in the 2010 Heart Gallery?  All are available for adoption now!

(The Heart Gallery of Metro Orlando is an innovative gallery-style photo exhibit that features some of the foster children available for adoption in central Florida.
The Heart Gallery of Metro Orlando is a program of Family Services of Metro Orlando.)

Family Services of Metro Orlando Celebrates It's 1,000th Adoption!

On Friday, June 25, 2010, Family Services of Metro Orlando celebrated its 1,000th foster care adoption with Judge Margaret T. Waller presiding. On the same day, 17 other families celebrated as they adopted more than 20 children into their families.


Eight-year-old Melissa became part of a forever family when she was adopted by Debbie and Joseph Defour, making her the 1000th adoption under Family Services' care. Learn more, or see news coverage at WFTV - 9 Family Connection and the Orlando Sentinel.


This milestone was achieved in fewer than six years through Family Services' extensive network of community partners in Orange and Osceola counties including:
 
Children's Home Society
Youth and Family Alternatives
One Hope United
Devereux Florida
Osceola County Guardians ad Litem
Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association
Children's Legal Services
Florida Department of Children and Families
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption

For more information on foster care and adoption in Central Florida, call 1-877-6-MY-KIDS or visit the Family Services of Metro Orlando website.

FSMO Seeks Help from Orlando's Faith Based Community to Send Foster Kids to Summer Camp

Family Services of Metro Orlando is seeking help from the faith based community to help send foster kids to summer camp.  CGC asked if this includes church camps and they said, "yes." This is a great opportunity for churches to step in and take a child who may have never have heard about God and let this child spend a week hearing all about Him.

If you belong to a church who is planning to send kids to camp, would you be willing to ask if your church could take a few foster kids? Once we find out if churches are willing to take some kids, we are going to work on finding sponsors for them. Please let us know if you can help. This is the first official request from the state to the faith based community and is a wonderful opportunity to have a Godly impact on a child.

Please let us know what you think. Let us know if your church can help or if you could just give us a contact person at church and we will follow up with asking.

We are under a bit of a time constraint since it will take some time to clear all the paperwork needed for these kids to attend camp. If you have any info, would you please get it to us by Sunday, April 25.

Thank you,
CGC

Family Services of Metro Orlando's "Give a Child a Childhood" Fundraising Breakfast to be help April 29

The annual Give a Child a Childhood Fundraising Breakfast is your opportunity to learn how your support has a profound impact on the lives of children and families in central Florida.
Did you know...

•more than 37% of former foster youth cost rather than contribute to society because they never received the supports and resources they needed to grow into healthy and productive citizens?

•more than 200 central Florida children died in 2008 due to abuse? While each life is priceless, the economic impact of these needless deaths is in excess of a half billion dollars every year.

•there are enough central Florida children awaiting adoption each year to fill fifteen classrooms?

•families of abused children generally suffer from as many as eight major life challenges - job loss, homelessness, domestic violence, addictions, physical and mental illness - all at once?

•even as the need increases, government provides only a shrinking fraction of what it costs to provide basic protection of children? We rely on individuals like you for support of our programs to improve the quality of life for children and families in our community.

The challenges children and families face are too large for nonprofits alone to solve. Family Services of Metro Orlando empowers everyone to be part of the solutions many in our community so desperately seek.

To register:  http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?oeidk=a07e2opqff970b1a227

Upcoming Events from Family Services of Metro Orlando

Annual Give a Child a Childhood Fundraising Breakfast

Give a child a childhood. Join us for just one hour to help create magical possibilities for children in central Florida. Learn how your support improves lives for just fifteen cents a day. A free continental breakfast will be served. Arrive by 8:30 a.m. for best parking.

Thursday, April 29, 2010; 9 - 10 a.m.
First Baptist Church of Orlando
3000 S. John Young Parkway
Orlando, FL 32804

RSVP to Janice Brodie or Anissa Mercado at 407-398-7975 or via e-mail to jbrodie@fsmetroorlando.org.

Table captains are needed! If you or someone you know is interested in serving as a table captain to encourage support of our mission, please contact Janice Brodie at jbrodie@fsmetroorlando.org or 407-398-7975.

Community Connection Tours
Across every community in central Florida, Family Services of Metro Orlando is making hope
happen for vulnerable children and families. Let us share our story with you.
Community Connection Tours are open to all and are held regularly from 8:45 a.m. - 10 a.m. at:
Family Services of Metro Orlando
2600 Technology Drive, Suite 250
Orlando, Florida 32804

Upcoming Community Connection Tours:
Friday, January 22, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
For more information, please contact:
Janice Brodie at 407-398-7335 or jbrodie@fsmetroorlando.org
Anissa Mercado at 407-398-7975 or amercado@fsmetroorlando.org

Help Us Tell Our Story!
Host a Community Connection Tour at your workplace, organization, or house of worship.
Please contact our team for additional information regarding this opportunity!

Connect with Us
Join the dialogue with us on the web! Search for Family Services of Metro Orlando at Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr or connect directly with us at the following addresses:
http://www.fsmetroorlando.org/
www.twitter.com/fsmetroorlando
www.facebook.com/fsmetroorlando
www.youtube.com/fsmetroorlando
http://www.flickr.com/ (Search for Family Services of Metro Orlando)

If you're on Twitter, be sure to tell your followers what you do to help kids! Use trending topic #2helpkids in your update.

Invitation to Spirit Week!

Mon., Oct. 26, 2009 - Fri., Oct. 30, 2009
3 - 6 p.m.
Orlando Downtown Recreation Center
649 W. Livingston St.
Orlando, FL 32801

Family Services of Metro Orlando has been selected by the Atlanta-based Dwight D. Howard Foundation as its local partner for a multi-day event to mark its expansion into the central Florida area.
The event, Spirit Week, will be open to participation by foster youth and former foster youth (reunified, adopted, aged out) and will involve four days of fun afterschool life skills learning opportunities focusing on:
· Dealing with negative pressure

· Goal setting

· Social etiquette

· "Work to earn"

· Proper money management

Youth may but do not need to participate on all four days.

The Dwight D. Howard Foundation and Family Services of Metro Orlando are supporting the cost of youth attendance over the four day period.

On the fifth day (October 30, 2009), the Dwight D. Howard Foundation will host a Family Fun Day free for all families to be held at:
Faith World Church 7601 Forest City Rd. Orlando, FL 32810

A limited number of slots are available for youth to participate in the afterschool life skills learning activities.

RSVP to Bart Mawoussi at bmawoussi@fsmetroorlando.org or 407-398-7332.