Spotlights

A Program from Champions for Children Helps Protect Against Child Abuse and Neglect

TALK READ SING Tampa Bay is a community awareness campaign led by Champions for Children that educates Tampa Bay residents, especially parents, about the importance of talking, reading and singing to their children beginning at birth for building brain architecture and increasing language development. Critically, these simple interactions also promote strong parent-child attachments that protect against child abuse and neglect.

This special initiative engages family-focused community partners to saturate Hillsborough County with this message by disseminating materials, sharing resources, and directly educating parents on the importance of making every day moments meaningful by simply talking, reading, and singing! So far, we have trained more than 100 “Trusted Messengers” to help the TALK READ SING Tampa Bay message reach more families as far and wide as possible.

We look forward to another year of spreading this critical message to parents, caregivers, and anyone with a child in their life in Hillsborough County.

To learn more: Follow Champions for Children on Instagram and Facebook @talkreadsingtampabay or visit www.talkreadsingtampabay.org. To donate: Visit www.cfctb.org or contact Jenna Ramos - jramos@cfctb.org.

Amanda Griffin Brings Sunshine to The Children’s Dream Fund

The Children’s Dream Fund recently announced their new Executive Director, Amanda Griffin. A native of St. Petersburg, Griffin graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Family and Child Sciences. Griffin began with an internship at the Children’s Dream Fund, and that’s when she felt she found her home.

The internship immersed Amanda into the world of making dreams come true, giving her insight into the Dream Fund’s mission. She soon became a staff member, working in events and marketing, and learned much from her mentor, former Dream Fund Executive Director, Cynthia Lake Farrell, who recently retired. Eventually, Amanda transitioned from the Dream Fund to gain experience from other roles in the nonprofit world, most recently in development and fundraising. But, recently returned to lead the nonprofit.

The Children’s Dream Fund was founded in 1981 with the single purpose of fulfilling dreams for children ages 3 - 21 who have been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, and who live in West Central Florida. They are one of the oldest, and busiest, wish-granting organizations in the U.S., with 150 children anticipating dreams in 2021.