Eight hundred volunteers from nearly 50 different companies pitched in for United Way's day of caring in Coconut Creek. United Way of Broward President and CEO Kathleen Cannon, SOS Children's Villages volunteer Keith Duvernay and volunteer Wayne Hunsucker spoke about the project.
Experts in child safety and abuse prevention gathered in Fort Lauderdale Thursday for the 10th anniversary event of Forever Family. Since 2002, the foundation has worked to find permanent homes for children in foster care and to assist those aging out of the system. Cindy Arenberg Seltzer, the CEO for Children’s Services Council of Broward County, said it is “our responsibility to keep children safe.” Retired circuit court judge John Frusciante, who was also at the event, called children “our most valuable asset.”
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Sophia and Princess Calizaire were introduced to foster care when they were seen wandering the streets looking for their mother, who had left them alone in a South Florida motel.
Eight hundred volunteers from nearly 50 different companies pitched in for United Way's day of caring, transforming the SOS Villages in Coconut Creek.
“There are 67 children who live here who are in the foster care system. And one way or another the system has really failed them,” said Kathleen Cannon, the president and CEO of the United Way of Broward, about the foster care village.
The children were sent to camp for the weekend. When they come home on Sunday, they will return to newly decorated surroundings, from the landscaping to newly painted walls and even murals.
"We are transforming their bedrooms and we are providing new beds and bed linens, and there's going to be a note on everyone's bed welcoming them home,” Cannon said.
On Friday, it was the volunteers who were getting the most joy, as they made an impact in the lives of children they will never see, or get the chance to meet.
"I hope once they come home, their eyes light up, and they see how nice the house looks and how wonderful of a job we've done for them,” said Wayne Hunsucker a volunteer from Frito-Lay.
The workers will be gone by Sunday, leaving a refurbished, cleaner place for the kids to call home.
"It is pretty heartwarming every day around here, just to see the way that folks show their compassion and caring by really doing something – something that makes a difference,” said Keith Duvernay, the CEO of SOS Children’s Villages.
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