CONNECT | February 2016

connect COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS OF CENTRAL FLORIDA

share your

t r a he

FEBRUARY 2016

sharing your heart THANK YOU FOR

“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries.

Without them humanity cannot survive.” DALAI LAMA

Brent A. Trotter

P R E S I D E N T/ C E O

Our mission is to transform the lives of homeless men, women and children by providing crucial services to end their crisis of homelessness.

You make it possible.

This issue of Connect is all about one thing. Love. It’s about the love that our organization and our clients have for you: our donors, our volunteers, and our advocates. It is your passion – what’s in your heart – that truly makes a difference in the lives of others.

is in a safe and loving environment.

You make it possible for a veteran to get help accessing the benefits he earned serving our country. You make it possible for families like Ahn’s to stay together in their time of crisis (Page 4).

For 29 years, the Coalition has relied on members of the community for so much, and you have never let us down.

Each night, you make it possible for us to open our doors to anyone in need of a nutritious meal. You make it possible for a mother to enroll her child in our on-site daycare, so she can go to work knowing her little one

I want to thank you for sharing your heart with us, and on Page 2, you’ll see that our clients want to thank you, too.

Thank you to everyone who joined our 2015 Chain of Hope! By giving us a great end to 2015, you’ve given us an amazing start to 2016.

Admi adrenaline media, inc.

R EDE FINI NG

S U C C E S S

This newsletter is generously sponsored by Adrenaline Media, Inc.

S AV E T H E D AT E APRIL 29, 2016

20th Annual Doug Spencer Golf Challenge Presented by Dellecker, Wilson, King, McKenna, Ruffier, & Sos At Falcon’s Fire Golf Club, golfers will compete to see who can play the most holes in five hours – all to raise money for the Coalition!

Players solicit flat donations and per hole pledges from friends, family, and business associates and are asked to raise a minimum of $1,500.

Visit CENTRALFLORIDAHOMELESS.ORG to become a golfer or sponsor today!

M AY 2 0 , 2 0 1 6 Hearts of Gold Presented by Reed Nissan Hearts of Gold, now in its 23rd year, is unlike any fundraising event you’ve attended! Taking place at Hard Rock Live at Universal Orlando, we fully encourage you to leave your suits and gowns at home and get ready to rock. The night will begin with complimentary beverages and hors d’oeuvres, a silent auction, and a raffle, followed by a phenomenal concert. Once again, Fernando Varela will serve as the evening’s host and one of the featured performers, and he has some extraordinarily talented special guests in store for you! Visit our website for sponsorship and ticket information.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Chairman Samuel C. “Trip” Stephens III ZOM, Inc. Vice Chair Douglas M. Spencer

Spencer Consulting Services Secretary Christopher C. Brockman

Holland & Knight LLP Treasurer Mindy Willis

Orlando Utilities Commission President/CEO Brent A. Trotter

Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, Inc. Steven Alexander, PFM Asset Management, LLC Marc Angle, U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management Timothy R. Baker, AIA, Baker Barrios Architects, Inc. Brooke R. Bonnett, City of Orlando Bakari F. Burns, Health Care Center for the Homeless, Inc. Fara K. Dantzler, Wells Fargo Bank N.A. Eric David, Expedia Local Expert Miranda F. “Randi” Fitzgerald, Lowndes, Drosdick, Doster, Kantor & Reed, P.A. Jim Fritz, Orlando Magic Eric D. Gassman, Orange County Government Christine S. Kefauver, HDR, Inc.

Fred R. Kittinger, Jr., University of Central Florida Ronald R. Lamb, SunTrust Bank Meagan Martin, Baker & Hostetler LLP Sean A. McLaughlin, Sungate Capital Michael Miller, Miller Air Group Lee Nimkoff, Brio Properties Elena H. Norman, Community Volunteer T. Todd Pittenger, Akerman LLP Stacey A. Prince-Troutman, Broad and Cassel John Rivers, 4R Restaurant Group Ty G. Roofner, Burr & Forman LLP Randy E. Schimmelpfennig, SchimmBros, Inc. John R. “Rick” Schooler, Orlando Health Scott R. Stahley, Lincoln Property Company of Florida, Inc. Barbara Larson Stuart, The Stuart Group Jane Tebbe-Shemelya, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment Richard G. “Rick” Wack, Mediation Services of Central Florida, Inc. Richard C. “Rich” Wahl, Findsome & Winmore Bill L. Warren, Community Volunteer Michael Weinberg, HFF, L.P. Brian T. Wilson, Dellecker Wilson King McKenna Ruffier & Sos, LLP Mark Woodbury, Universal Parks & Resorts Erin Trabel Youngs, Walt Disney World Resort Aaron Zandy, Ford & Harrison LLP

love notes you FROM OUR CLIENTS TO You make our work possible. Whether you give your time, talent, or treasure, you directly impact the lives of those we serve, and we are tremendously grateful. So, in the spirit of Valentine’s Day, some of our clients wrote notes of love and gratitude to you.

Thank you so much for helping and making it possible for my kids and me to have a place to stay when we didn’t have anywhere else to go! I also want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to start over, as hard as it may be. A chance and help is all I needed!

Thank you for taking a moment of your time to give back to those that are in transition.

2

Thank you for allowing me to come to this facility to get my life together and a new start after leaving the Army. I am grateful for my case manager and staff here.

Thank you for giving me a warm place to stay, food in my stomach, and case management to get on my feet.

Thanks for giving me and my new baby girl a place to live, to get better, and to achieve our goals.

I really appreciate all your support. At moments like this, we all need some support to get on our feet again.

Thank you for everything you do for us! It’s such a blessing! Everything you do is greatly appreciated! God bless!

Very thankful for all the donations and thoughts and prayers.

Thank you for keeping a roof over me and my kids’ heads as we go through this rough time. We appreciate everything you do while I work to get us back on our feet.

Thank you for having faith in me and those like me. Thank you for shelter and all the other resources you provide.

You make it possible for me to be a success.

Thank you for providing a roof over my family during this hard time. I have a family of 7 and it’s truly been hard for the past 6 months. So we appreciate all the kindness and help. May God bless.

3

e p o h f y o r o s t e s i s ’ or ahn

t s #

raising five children is a difficult task. but raising five children when you’ve lost your home? That’s nearly impossible.

Read on to find out how Ahn’s family ended up at the Coalition.

4

I’m from New York. We came to Florida because of the weather — for my health — and better schooling for the children. I have five kids. Anthony is 15; AJ is 13; Aiden is 11; Sevan is 7; and Kiki is 4. She’ll be 5 this month.

I have fibromyalgia and a lot of other health issues. It’s warm out here, and part of my therapy is to go swimming. It helps the muscles. So, we moved here in April 2015.

We had a roommate. She was doing okay for a little bit, but after a while, she wasn’t able to pay her half of the rent. The second time she didn’t pay her part, it made me late with rent. The apartment was strict. They didn’t want anything to be late. They wouldn’t give me two weeks for

Last year, YOU PROVIDED

222,803 NIGHTS OF SHELTER

you made a huge difference YOU SERVED

YOU DONATED

NUTRITIOUS MEALS

VOLUNTEER HOURS

270,000

in the lives of homeless “i think they would see the expression on my face. they could see how tired i was...”

57,903

families.

my husband to get me the rest of the rent, so we were evicted.

the luggage, sitting outside. We did this at 7-11, too. It was a blessing, because some people would come and give the kids money. It was very tiresome. It was just stressful.

That was in September.

We went back and forth between sleeping in hotels and sleeping outside.

We did so much walking in Kissimmee — it’s not even funny. One time, we found a big empty parking lot behind a flea market, and we decided to stay there. We met other people who were homeless.

We had a stroller and the chairs that you take to football games. We had blankets. We would make a pile of blankets somewhere behind a building. That was something to experience. I’m glad it was warm outside.

At least it wasn’t cold. But it was hard. I didn’t really sleep.

The kids weren’t even in school. When school started, it was so hard because we were in Kissimmee at a motel. I tried to get them into school, but the buses didn’t go there.

You had to go all the way out to a certain place, but we didn’t have any transportation. The kids missed a whole two or three months of school.

We were able to eat because we had food stamps. But finding somewhere to sleep was hard, because you don’t know what people are going to do. That’s why I didn’t sleep.

Sometimes my husband and I would take turns sleeping. I would go and panhandle. I make jewelry, so I would sit at the gas station, sell jewelry, and make a couple of dollars.

There were times when we went to Publix, asking people to buy us food. I think they would see the expression on my face. They would see how tired I was, and see us with

One night, this lady walked over. She asked if our kids had eaten, and we said, ‘Thank you. They just finished eating.’But she called the police and told them our kids weren’t eating. It turned out to be a good thing that she did that, because the police called DCF [Department of Children and Families]. That’s how we wound up at the Coalition.

I was thankful that we were able to get into the family dorm.

We have our own room. Four walls and three bunkbeds.

Everyone has their own bed.

My case manager, Kimberly, is working to get us into a housing program with low rent. Kimberly is a beautiful person. She’s wonderful. I love her.

My goal is to continue to make and save money for our children’s futures. And to fight my disabilities. Our family is going to continue to move forward and count our blessings.”

For more Stories of Hope, follow us on Facebook: FB.COM/COALITIONFORTHEHOMELESS 5

LEAVE A LEGACY OF

ol ve

By remembering the Coalition in your will or estate plan, you can help guarantee that we will be here for future families who need a helping hand. Not only will your gift provide an estate tax deduction for your family, it will serve as a lasting tribute to your compassion and commitment to our mission.

For further information on how to include the Coalition in your charitable giving plans, please contact Tracie Morris, Director of Development, at 407.426.1265 or Tracie.Morris@cflhomeless.org.

GRANTS $50,000 - $59,999 Burnett Charitable Foundation Orlando Magic Youth Fund $40,000 - $49,999 Anonymous Foundation $30,000 - $39,999 Elizabeth Morse Genius Foundation $20,000 - $29,999 Bank of America Charitable Foundation Holloway Family Foundation

$15,000 - $19,999 JC Foundation $10,000 - $14,999 VNA Foundation $5,000 - $9,999 Charles Schwab Foundation Anonymous Foundation Chesley Magruder Foundation FCA Foundation Publix Super Markets Charities TJX Foundation Bailes Family Foundation

$1,000 - $4,999 The Martin Andersen-Gracia Andersen Foundation Southeastern Grocers Foundation Bond Foundation Charles Hosmer Morse Foundation Wells Fargo Foundation Westfield Insurance Foundation Maximus Foundation Harry P. Leu Foundation Wal-Mart Store #5179 Wal-Mart Store #908 Wal-Mart Store #5875

639 WEST CENTRAL BOULEVARD, ORLANDO, FL 32801 | 407.426.1250 | CENTRALFLORIDAHOMELESS.ORG