SociallyGood is a community event presented by Leadership Broward Foundation and it’s open to everyone! Each month SociallyGood will feature a nonprofit partner who will receive 100% of the proceeds from all SociallyGood guest fees collected from that evening.
Leadership Broward Foundation cares about our community and we are continually seeking ways to be a stronger agent for change. Our mission is to develop and inspire individuals to serve our community. Please join us, as we network with our supporters and friends and introduce them to some of the amazing work that is being performed by local non profits in our community today.
Our Nonprofit Partner this month is:
The Broward Partnership built and operates the Broward County Central Homeless Assistance Center on the Huizenga Campus.
Completed and opened in 1999, the 57,000 square foot, 230-bed short term residential shelter was funded almost entirely with private donations. The Broward Partnership provides short-term housing and solution-focused services to individuals and families. The term “emergency” means that the average stay is 60 days. Since it’s opening, the Partnership has assisted more than 23,400 individuals.
The Broward Partnership staff.The Broward Partnership believes that an individual’s stay at the Center, although time limited, represents a unique (and perhaps only) opportunity to stabilize, engage and acquire the personal tools necessary to break the cycle of homelessness. More than an emergency shelter, the Center provides a safe and nurturing environment designed to highlight alternatives to living on the street and provide each resident with the means to reacquire health, housing, and a sustaining income.
List of Services:
Primary medical and dental care. Mental health diagnosis and treatment, and psychiatric services.
Substance abuse education, prevention, intervention and treatment; as well as 12-Step programs.
Access to child care, parenting education,support groups and family therapy; Educational services, including GED classes, vocational assessment, job readiness, job training and placement services. Life skills classes and computer classes.
The first floor of the facility contains a family dorm that accomodates up to 30 women and their children, the medical and dental clinics, case management offices, the workforce development center and computer lab, the child care center, a children’s learning center, classrooms, a library, a gym, a hair salon, a clothing center and laundry facilities.
The second story accommodates the behavioral health offices, and the living arrangements consisting of two men’s dormitories that house a total of 120 men, one women’s dormitory for 40 women, and a modular family wing for ten families or 40 family members. Construction was recently completed at the Center that added an additional thirty beds for women and women with families. In addition to the 30 new beds, with the generous support of the Realtor Association of Greater Fort Lauderdale Charitable Foundation, we have renovated the children’s playground with new ADA compliant, age appropriate equipment and synthetic turf.
Program participants eat in a central dining room that serves three meals prepared in the Center’s commercial kitchen. The kitchen also serves as a vocational training facility for residents interested in careers in food service.
A landscaped central outdoor courtyard provides residents a place to read, reflect and speak with other residents. A butterfly garden, built by the employees of JM Family Enterprises, provides additional space for our residents to reflect on the challenges ahead. Each resident, as part of their program provides community service time while at the Center, many choose to assist in the maintainance of the grounds and helping with cleaning in the kitchen.