Cedrick Brown with his daughters Boys & Girls Clubs of Lee County staff and volunteers
FORT MYERS, Fla. (July 9, 2014) – In partnership with the Lee County Housing Authority, Boys & Girls Clubs of Lee County, Lee County Black History Society, Inc. and the City of Fort Myers STARS Complex, the Housing Authority of the City of Fort Myers hosted its Fourth Annual Father’s Day Celebration, an initiative created to strengthen families and communities by supporting dads, on Saturday, June 14 at Clemente Park in Fort Myers.
More than 200 people joined in on this year’s Father’s Day Celebration, which offered a variety of fun and entertainment for the entire family including youth and adult basketball competitions, flag football, music, stage performances, food and drinks, various kids’ activities and more. Event attendees also had an opportunity to receive free information from community businesses in the areas of education, health, employment, housing and many other services.
“We are so thankful for the local businesses that joined us in supporting this positive initiative this year,” said Twaski Jackson, director of client services for the HACFM. “Every night, one-out-of-three children go to bed in a home without a father, but with the Father’s Day Celebration, we’re able to bring fathers and their children together and encourage a strong bond between them as well as connect dads to the resources needed to succeed, including job training, health screenings, education, outreach and many other opportunities.”
As part of President Obama’s Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative, the HACFM’s annual Father’s Day event is a nationwide day of events encouraged by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Fatherhood and Mentoring Initiative partners with the Administration for Children and Families, White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse, fathers, mothers, family-serving organizations and other leaders from across the country who wish to be positive role models and mentors for the children in their lives and communities.
The HACFM combined its Father’s Day festivities with the Lee County Black History Society’s ‘Juneteenth’ celebrations.
Currently, the HACFM serves more than 3,500 low-income families throughout the greater Fort Myers community. The HACFM provides high quality, stable and sustainable housing and related services to people in need. In addition, the staff works diligently in providing programs such as Resident Services/Family Self-Sufficiency and HOPE VI Community Supportive Services. The goal is to help families become self-sufficient, therefore strengthening the communities that use public and private resources efficiently and effectively.
The HACFM serves as a catalyst for increasing access to safe, affordable housing, and helping develop, preserve and revitalize communities through affordable rental housing. The agency is dedicated to empowering families with the means to become as self-sufficient as possible, encouraging and facilitating movement toward financial independence beyond the need for HACFM services, while recognizing the needs and limitations of the mentally and physically disabled, aged and infirmed.
For more information about the annual Father’s Day event or the HACFM, contact Twaski Jackson at 239-344-3251 or visit www.hacfm.org.
Twaski Jackson with Allstate volunteers Cathy Sink and her son Brandon Collier
Shannon Lane with BGCLC member John Jones
Quality Life Center at Father’s Day Celebration 2014
Officer Bryan Fuller with event attendee
HACFM employees Yeney Ruiz and Lori Rosado
Dunbar Neighborhood Watch Coordinator Taunya Cola with youth basketball players Jeremy Benjamin, Reggie Jennings and Darius Gibbons
Deborah Johnson, Renee Roberts and Beverly Hill
David Fairman, Charles Barnes and Twaski Jackson
Kendrick Barnes with his daughter Korrin
