More help is on the way for struggling Miami-Dade children and their families
We live in an ever-changing, and sometimes challenging, world, with many families having little time to catch their breath. Challenges in housing affordability, mental wellness and rising costs of goods and services have direct impacts on families in our community.
The Children’s Trust was formed almost 20 years ago to help all children and families in Miami-Dade throughout various circumstances. Still, our work is especially crucial in times like these. If there is one thing we have learned over these past two years, it is that together we can overcome any obstacles.
The Trust is steadfast in supporting the community with strategic partnerships that support children and families. The Trust’s theory of change is that if we promote positive childhood experiences, build family and provide support for essential needs, children, youth and families will achieve better outcomes.
We have a track record of making a difference and are committed to doing more. The Trust is investing nearly $14 million in our Family and Neighborhood Support Partnerships initiative (FNSP), which specifically addresses the needs of local families confronted with these challenges. The Trust is funding 22 providers that serve a variety of children and families, including those who live in neighborhoods affected by poverty and crime; as well as youth with incarcerated parents, transitioning out of the foster-care system, facing immigration challenges and those living with disabilities, to name a few.
This year’s increased investment will empower FNSP grant recipients with a track record of making a difference, such as Gang Alternative, Opa-locka Community Development Agency, Concerned African Women, Sant La, and Connect Familias. Firsttime FNSP grantees will also be ready to support specific populations of children and families, like United Community Options
(formerly United Cerebral Palsy), Kristi House and Empowering Youth.
This investment will allow families to work with success coaches, who will help them navigate systems and support them by connecting them to the social services, therapy, beneficial programs, and essential stabilization items they may need, like assistance with transportation and short-term housing help. These success coaches create plans for these families, focus on their strengths, and refer them to other needed resources. They also track their progress to ensure they are better positioned to overcome future challenges.
The Trust also recently awarded more than a dozen grants through our
Innovation Fund, which promotes breakthrough ways of addressing existing challenges, and we invested in training for Trust-funded providers to build their capacity and support their continuous learning and quality improvements.
Providing comprehensive support to the children and families of Miami-Dade will remain a Trust priority. If you or someone you know would like this kind of support,
call the 211 Helpline. To learn more about our
FNSP providers, visit thechildrenstrust.org/ FNSP.
Stable families support children’s health, wellbeing and success. Together, we can give youth a chance to persevere through difficult times and emerge healthier, happier and more successful.