August 1, 2011 – Brevard Family Partnership has been awarded a grant from United Space Alliance that will enable Brevard County’s lead child welfare agency to provide mobile phones to foster youth so that they can communicate with family members. The $2,000 grant for BFP’s “Keeping Kids Connected” program will provide basic mobile phones, accessories, and airtime cards to several youth in the foster care system.
Each year, hundreds of children in Brevard are removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment and it is often traumatic for them to be separated from their friends, family, and local communities. To lessen the anxiety associated with this separation period, Brevard Family Partnership has implemented the “Keeping Kids Connected” program to promote and enable continued communication between the child and family members, when appropriate, to reassure a child that they have not been forgotten.
“We’re very thankful to USA for supporting our efforts to make the out-of-home care experience for our children less traumatic,” said Brevard Family Partnership’s CEO, Dr. Patricia Nellius. “Oftentimes issues and emotions that can create barriers in communication delay the recovery process and the ultimate goal of reunification. Our ‘Keeping Kids Connected’ program was developed to provide a safe, secure, and cost-effective way to maintain communication between children in out-of-home care, foster parents, biological parents, and other support providers.”
The award is especially welcomed at a time when BFP has seen its new fiscal year income reduced by almost $1 million, due to cuts in Florida’s state budget made during the recent legislative session. BFP utilizes a variety of programs to fulfill its mission of “Protecting Children, Strengthening Families, and Changing Lives” and looks to build programmatic capacity through grants and awards.
For more information about Brevard Family Partnership’s programs and services visit www.fpocf.org or call (321) 752-4650.
