2011 Capacity-Building Awardees

NFI is pleased to announce the 2011 Capacity-Building Awardees. To view information about each awardee, click on the link below.

Awardee Narratives

American Indian Center of Chicago, Inc. | Back to Top |
Chicago, IL

The American Indian Center (AIC) was established in 1953, and is the oldest urban Indian community center since the Federal Indian Relocation Act of the 1950's. AIC provides programs and activities that target the needs of American Indian People of the greater Chicago metropolitan area, as well as outreaching to Native people throughout Illinois and the Midwest. The AIC also builds bridges of understanding and cultural exchange with people of all ethnic, national and spiritual backgrounds through dialogue, presentations and partnerships.

The AIC activities and services fall under three major program departments: Arts, Education and Wellness. 1) The Arts programs include: contemporary Native artist exhibits and performances at the Trickster Gallery; Pow Wows at the AIC; and cultural presentations throughout the Chicago region and State. 2) Education programs include: Positive Paths After School and Summer Program; Chicago Public Schools Teachers Training for American Indian curriculum; Early childhood development; "Urban Explorers" science curriculum development for middle grade American Indian students. 3) Wellness Programs include: Senior Lunches and social activities; health screenings; wellness education; social service outreach and referral; complimentary modalities such as acupuncture and massage; nutrition education and consultation; Food Pantry; Native Medicine Garden; Traditional Healers; monthly family wellness nights.

Bridges of America - The Broward County Bridge | Back to Top |

Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Bridges of America (BOA) is one of the largest community substance abuse treatment organizations in the state of Florida serving over 1,600 clients from seven facilities. Our mission is to provide clients with chemical dependency and/or criminal behavior problems an opportunity to experience freedom from this life threatening disease. Our program is designed to eliminate the root cause of problems and provide healing for the whole person. The majority of our work is with non-violent offender under the Department of Corrections supervision. We also operate Work Release Programs designed to allow incarcerated inmates who are near completion of their sentence to work within the community, but housed at a Work Release Facility.

Our Substance Abuse Program is also a Therapeutic Community (TC) that provides intensive substance abuse services from inmates that have a remaining sentence of 24 to 36 months. The program assists inmates nearing release in making a successful transition from the correctional institution to their home community

The Fatherhood Initiative will operate from our Broward County Bridge facility in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Of the 235 clients currently at the Broward Bridge facilities, 83 (35%) are black, males; 134 (57%) are white, male and 18 (7%) identify themselves as other.

Camden Comprehensive Center for Fathers | Back to Top |

Camden, NJ

The Camden Comprehensive Center for Fathers (CCCF), established in 2008, is the outgrowth of two decades of deeply committed services, provided under the auspices of the Genesis Economic Self-Sufficiency Program. CCCF was established to meet the most critical needs of young dads released back into the community following extended periods of incarceration. CCCF links non-custodial fathers who are undereducated and unemployed, to supportive programs grounded in discipline, respect and recognition of the role and value of fathers in the lives of their children and offers a structured environment, designed to enhance their education and marketability in the workforce.

At CCCF, fathers receive help overcoming barriers, which preclude their ability to be effective, nurturing parents and learn valuable skills that enable them to improve their relationships with their children and become productive contributors to their community. CCCF provides services to meet dads where they are, then systematically guides them toward realizing areas of greater potential for skill and character development. The program's primary objective is to provide each participant with a solid foundation upon which to build economic self-sufficiency and effective parenting skills.

Please visit us online at www.genesiscamden.org.

Care Net Pregnancy Resource Center | Back to Top |
Rapid City, SD

Care Net Pregnancy Resource Center was established in 1985 as the Black Hills Crisis Pregnancy Center in Rapid City, South Dakota. For over 25 years we have been providing confidential support by exploring appropriate resources and referrals for all impacted by an unplanned pregnancy. All of our services are free to our clients and underwritten by the generous support of individuals, businesses, churches from the Black Hills Region of South Dakota. Our clients are typically single women between the ages of 19 and 24 from low income households who are underemployed and lack health insurance. The ethnic makeup of our clients are about 50% Caucasian and 40% American Indian and 10% other ethnic background. Our client website is www.carenetprc.com and our partner website is www.carenetpartners.com.

Compel Them to Come | Back to Top |

Milwaukee, WI

COMPEL began from concerns within the black community that we are losing our children, our men, our families and our heritage. COMPEL's mission is to strengthen families and re-establish the family heritage of Milwaukee. While providing programs respectful of current family diversity, COMPEL focuses on the benefits of marriage and two-parent families to alleviate social ills, foster health and happiness for all family members, allow the poor to prosper and strengthen the social foundation of this city.

COMPEL serves predominantly the African-American community of Milwaukee in ways to elevate their spirit, energize their life competencies and expand their future potential. As a true grassroots agency, COMPEL rallies community support to change what only people themselves can change - expectations and examples.

Please visit us online at www.compelmilw.org.

Cope Family Center | Back to Top |

Napa, CA

Since 1972, Cope Family Center has been the "first stop for families" in Napa county, supporting and educating families to provide safe and healthy living environments for their children. Cope provides a myriad of services aimed at helping families reduce daily stressors, move toward self-sufficiency, and learn positive parenting techniques. Our philosophy is simple: children are more apt to flourish when their parents do, so strategies to improve child development and educational success must address issues that affect parental and family well-being.

Cope offers comprehensive programming to families and children through: home visitation, supervised visitation, emergency and financial services, and parenting education and support. In addition, Cope houses the Child Abuse Prevention Council of Napa County (CAPC). CAPC provides leadership to prevent child abuse by coordinating prevention efforts with partner agencies that work directly with children and families. The program also raises community awareness through professional training and community education and advocates locally and at state level for policies that positively impact families.

All Cope services are provided in Spanish and English by a bicultural/bilingual staff.

Dispute Resolution Center of Thurston County | Back to Top |
Olympia, WA

The Dispute Resolution Center (DRC) of Thurston County is a volunteer-driven, private non-profit organization that has been empowering people to solve their own conflicts for 19 years. We are part of the community mediation movement. We serve Thurston and south Mason Counties in Washington State, helping people resolve disputes in a peaceful and productive way. The conflicts we mediate include family and divorce, parenting plans and visitation issues, workplace and neighborhood conflicts, disputes brought to Small Claims Court, organizational and inter-agency conflicts, restorative justice conversations, and elder care matters.

The DRC of Thurston County also trains about 500 people each year in conflict resolution skills, helping increase people's capacity to deal effectively with conflict in their personal, work, and community lives. In addition to training aspiring mediators and facilitators, the training department also designs and delivers custom trainings, including work with state agencies, non-profit organizations, schools, the US military, and others.

Please visit us online at: www.mediatethurston.org.

Escuela Bolivia | Back to Top |

Arlington, VA

Escuela Bolivia was founded in 1998 by Bolivian parents, in partnership with Arlington Public Schools, who sought to meet the educational needs of the region's growing Latino population. Since its inception, Escuela Bolivia has worked to empower thousands of Latino children, youth and families through education and leadership development programs. Escuela Bolivia serves Latino families of all origins and also teaches the broader community about the Latin American culture to enhance cross-cultural understanding. Core programs include Academic Language Programs, Emerging Leaders Program and Parent Leadership Initiative.

Escuela Bolivia's Latino roots have given the organization a unique insight into our community's needs. As such, it has developed community-based solutions to support Latino families of modest means from Arlington and other nearby counties of Northern Virginia, as well as Washington, DC.

Forestdale, Inc. | Back to Top |

Forest Hills, NY

Forestdale is a Queens based organization that connects young people and families to their communities. We provide foster care, preventive services and a nationally recognized Fatherhood Initiative that reunites fathers with their children and prepares them to become active dads. We also work with pregnant and parenting teens to help them access medical care, day care and education. Forestdale's overall mission is to increase the resilience and independence of the over 1000 families we serve each year.

Forestdale provides adolescents, including young fathers in our Fathering Initiative, with reproductive health care and health literacy to stem the rising tide of teenage pregnancy and parenting, as well as to prepare teens to become their own health care advocates. We unstintingly promote education in order to prepare teens enrolled in our Youth Development program to live independently.

Forestdale has partnered successfully with numerous foundations to support the growth and innovation of our programs. We have leveraged our relationship with the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD), which provides the core funding to our Fathering Initiative, to secure additional funding. Over the years, grants to the Fathering Initiative from the Dammann Fund, Verizon Corporation, Western Union Foundation and others have helped us to grow and innovate, so that we now successfully serve over 300 fathers each year.

Friends of Island Academy | Back to Top |

New York, NY

With the mission to help reduce recidivism, Friends of Island Academy was founded 20 years ago to help anchor ad develop capacity among adolescents and young adults released from jail in New York City. We began operating our fatherhood programs as a means of reducing the cycles of incarceration that occur across generations. Our Young Fathers Initiative serves fathers 16-24 years old who have been involved with the criminal justice system. Friends 2 Fathers works with non-custodial fathers, 25 years and older, most of whom are referred by local courts or child welfare.

We provide a variety of individualized services, including counseling; anger management; court advocacy; assistance with child support, visitation and custody matters; and intensive case management. We also provide on-site educational classes and counseling, employment assistance, financial literacy, and leadership training. Participants attend workshops in several relevant topics, including parenting skills, conflict resolution/mediation, men's health and wellness, financial literacy, healthy relationships, career development and other areas of importance to their lives and their ability to parent. Friends of Island Academy is centrally located at 255 W. 36th Street, Suite 601, in the Midtown West section of Manhattan. We operate a satellite office in the Parkside Houses in the Bronx, and are currently in the process of opening additional satellite offices in the Williamsburg and Canarsie sections of Brooklyn.

Please visit us online at www.foiany.org.

Haymarket Center | Back to Top |

Chicago, IL

McDermott Center dba Haymarket Center is Chicago's largest not-for-profit substance abuse treatment agency serving over 22,000 men and women annually with severe substance use disorders and complex problems including homelessness, unemployment, and criminal justice involvement.
Haymarket's mission is to aid people with chemical dependency in their recovery by providing a continuum of optimal professional care that is responsive to the identified needs of the community. To achieve this mission, Haymarket identifies and addresses key barriers to effective treatment and recovery. Over 67% of the clients Haymarket serves each year are men from economically disadvantaged African American communities of South and West side Chicago. A significant number of these men are unmarried fathers with one or more children (often from different women) which they either abandoned or have been estranged from because of their substance abuse. As these men complete our treatment programs and enter recovery, most want to reestablish relationships with their children and become responsible fathers. Establishing loving and mutually supporting relationships with their children can be a great asset helping to support their recovery from substance use disorders.

Please visit us online at www.hcenter.org.

Health Services for Children with Special Needs, Inc. | Back to Top |

Washington, DC

Health Services for Children with Special Needs, Inc. (HSCSN) is a nonprofit managed care organization that coordinates health, social and educational service for the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) eligible children and youth. We provide services to members under the age of 24. Each child and youth enrolled with HSCSN is assigned a care manager that works closely with the caregiver, the child and providers to coordinate all the health services necessary for the child. HSCSN's mission is to provide access to comprehensive, quality health care for children with disabilities and complex medical needs in the District of Columbia through a network of family support services.

HSCSN's Family Support Network consists of the following programs - Parent Advocacy Leaders Group (PALS), Male Caregivers Advocacy Support Group (MCAS), Youth Athletic Program and Healthy Living Project.

For more information, please visit us online at www.hscsn-net.org.

LifeWorks, Inc. | Back to Top |

Austin, TX

The Youth and Family Alliance dba LifeWorks is a private, not-for-profit, multi-service youth and family agency located in Austin, TX. The agency's mission is to transition youth and families from crisis to safety and success, and it offers a safety net of support to more than 10,000 individuals each year. LifeWorks is headed by an Executive Director who reports to a volunteer Board of Governors.

LifeWorks is the only social service organization in Austin to offer a comprehensive network of support to youth and families. Three service divisions - Education, Housing and Homelessness and Counseling - provide both stand-alone and mutually supportive services. The Education Services division provides critical educational and skill-building services to help youth avoid crisis and develop into strong, healthy adults; the Housing and Homelessness Services division provides a continuum of support (from street outreach to self-sufficiency) for homeless and runaway youth; and the Counseling Services division is the largest provider of free and affordable counseling in the Austin area. LifeWorks niche is to successfully serve populations which have the greatest needs and to support them through cooperative partnerships and a myriad of programs that utilize a strength-based, solution focused approach to addressing problems. Please visit us online at www.lifeworksaustin.org.

Living Stones International, Inc. | Back to Top |

Tallahassee, FL

Living Stones is a ministry dedicated to strengthening families in the Big Bend area of Florida encompassing seven counties of Gadsden, Jefferson, Leon, Madison, Perry, Taylor, and Wakulla. Our organization is on the frontline advocating for healthy families, fathers and mothers, as well as re-entry programs for ex-offenders to assist them in obtaining jobs, housing, and educational pursuits. Our staff and volunteers are dedicated to providing families the tools to stay together; children to grow up in a stable and safe environment; and fathers to take responsibilities for their households.

We are living in perilous times where fifty-five percent of married couples are ending in divorce; sixty-five percent of men and women are living together prior to getting married or never marry; ten million children have parents who have been imprisoned sometime in their life; and approximately two out of three individuals who are released from prison in the United States are rearrested within three years. Our challenge is breaking this trend and restoring the family, a fundamental building block of a stable and strong society. Living Stones is Gary and Josephine Montgomery's vision for a Christian Family Outreach Ministry building a spiritual body of believers.

Manhattan Catholic Charities | Back to Top |

Manhattan, KS

Manhattan Catholic Charities is a social service agency of the Catholic Diocese of Salina, Inc. in Manhattan, KS (also referred to as "The Little Apple"). The region has a diverse population including Kansas State University, 3 local community colleges, a technical college, a major military base-Ft. Riley, numerous corporations and manufacturers, and both urban and rural communities.

Our mission is to reduce poverty, support families and empower communities, regardless of one's faith. We provide Counseling/Therapy, Marriage Education, Emergency Assistance, Crisis Pregnancy Services, Adoptions, Home Studies, Immigrant and Hispanic Services, and now Fatherhood Programs. Catholic Charities USA is celebrating its 100th year of service, while Catholic Charities of Salina celebrates its 50th year and Manhattan Catholic Charities celebrates its 10th year of giving back to our communities.

Men's Health Coalition of Middle Tennessee | Back to Top |

Nashville, TN

The Men's Health Coalition of Middle Tennessee is a newly formed group based in Nashville, TN. The coalition's mission is to provide the men of Middle Tennessee with the tools and resources necessary to create a state of complete physical, mental, social and spiritual well-being for themselves and their families. The coalition was founded through a partnership between Alexander Arthur Ministries and the Metro Public Health Department of Nashville, TN. The coalition is growing rapidly and currently has over 18 member organizations. Initially The Men's Health Coalition of Middle Tennessee's Responsible Fatherhood programs will target males living in North Nashville, TN (37208 zip code). The coalition also reaches out to the surrounding areas with the future goal of providing evidenced based programming to the entire Middle TN region. The ultimate goal of the coalition is to provide a comprehensive network of services that will support men in their efforts to be the husbands, fathers, and brothers they have been called to be.

Missouri Bootheel Regional Consortium | Back to Top |

Sikeston, MO

The mission of the Missouri Bootheel Regional Consortium, Inc. (MBRC) is to strengthen, promote, and empower families and communities through quality, focused programs. MBRC strives to be the pivotal resource for all the social, health, and economic development needs of families and underserved members of the surrounding communities in the southeast corner of Missouri known as the Bootheel due to its shape. MBRC provides aid in the most critical areas in the region by offering four essential programs: Healthy Start, Fatherhood First, Low Birth Weight Initiative, and Saving Our Families. MBRC remains dedicated to offering comprehensive, compassionate, and respectful care to the community while working to achieve excellence and maximize the potential of each client, employee, volunteer, and board member through a respectful and supportive organization. In the last year, MBRC has helped close to 5,000 families through direct services and we anticipate a substantial increase this coming year thanks to supporting organizations like the National Responsible Fatherhood Capacity Building Initiative!

Montgomery County Community Action Development Commission (CADCOM) | Back to Top |

Norristown, PA

The Montgomery County Community Action Development Commission (CADCOM) is a suburban Philadelphia social service agency that has served low and moderate income residents of Montgomery County, PA since 1966. CADCOM works to stimulate, fund and implement numerous community programs as the county's lead anti-poverty agency, with a mission to mobilize the human and financial resources of the county by initiating, developing and administering community and economic development programs designed to provide the tools needed to achieve self-sufficiency. CADCOM's goals include providing for all the needs of low-income county residents, empowering homeless and low-income residents to achieve self-sufficiency and coordinating efforts with other organizations providing service to the poor.

CADCOM began its first Fatherhood Initiative in February of 2010, with a mission to strengthen families by empowering and educating the men that lead them through resources and instruction. The goals of this program include - providing men with the tools to overcome the barriers in their lives, to decrease the absentee father syndrome, and to encourage fathers to take a more active role in the lives of their children. Through the Fatherhood Initiative, CADCOM assists men in gaining employment and job skills, provides guidance for male ex-offenders to overcome the barriers of their convictions and teaches men how to engage as active leaders in their families and communities. Despite being a brand new program, the Fatherhood Initiative's staff has diligently worked to build a repertoire of community partners to help bring nearly 100 men through the program.

Newark Now | Back to Top |

Newark, NJ

The Newark Comprehensive Center for Fathers (NCCF) is annually helping more than 100 fathers develop a stronger commitment to fatherhood, stronger parenting skills, and stronger employment skills. NCCF serves fathers in transition - men who have lost their jobs and homes, or who are re-entering the workforce following incarceration and who seek to assume greater responsibility for and contribute to the lives of their children. NCCF has successfully placed 60% of its graduates in gainful employment. In addition, men served by NCCF recidivate at a remarkably low rate of 3%.

Using a holistic approach, NCCF conducts four six week sessions annually through its fatherhood developmental program which provide the men with mentors, parenting and life skills, legal assistance, help to improve math and reading skills, individual counseling, support groups, Father/Child activities, employment search and interview preparation services. NCCF enables men to become better fathers, employees and citizens of Newark, and Essex County. These services are available to fathers regardless of their custody status.

Fathers Now is one of several initiatives that Newark Now has implemented. Newark Now was founded by Newark Mayor Cory A. Booker in 2003 to provide Newark residents with skills, tools, and support to transform their neighborhoods. After a robust outreach effort, Newark Now's work began with seven brave grassroots organizations. Today, those seven organizations are some of the most successful grassroots organizations within the City of Newark and have been joined by many more grassroots organizations that partner with Newark Now to improve their neighborhoods.

Over the years, Newark Now's work has evolved. Today, Newark Now is an intermediary organization that partners with municipal government, residents, grassroots organizations, and the philanthropic community to catalyze the achievement of significant positive outcomes throughout the city. The organization channels the efforts and energy of the grassroots community to improve safety, economic independence, and civic participation.

Please visit us online at www.newarknow.org.

Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission | Back to Top |

Covington, KY

Northern Kentucky Community Action Commission lifts up families and children in ways that no other organization can. For more than 40 years, we have worked hard to develop a strong reputation for providing quality, essential services and for providing a voice for the low income families we serve.
Our Mission is to help low income individuals and families develop the knowledge, opportunities, and resources they need to achieve self reliance. NKCAC takes a whole person - whole family - whole community approach, with two primary focus areas:
Developmental - helping families gain the skills, abilities, and motivations to become economically independent; and
Supportive - providing basic, temporary assistance to give families greater comfort, safety, dignity and security as they transition out of poverty.
Our impressive and diverse range of services help low income families eliminate the barriers and circumstances which tend to prevent self-sufficiency, while proving that safety net to help families improve comfort and functioning while on the journey toward economic independence.

Sav-A-Life, Inc. | Back to Top |

Birmingham, AL

Sav-A-Life, Inc., the Vestavia Hills Center has been serving the men and women of Jefferson county Alabama and other outlying counties since 1980. Since its inception, Sav-A-Life has held true to its values of helping those in need make life-affirming decisions concerning their pregnancy and knowledge that brings needed restoration to their lives. Over 40,000 clients have found us to be a place that provides help and hope – physically, mentally and spiritually.

Please visit us online at www.savalife.org.

St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Healthy Start | Back to Top |

Pontiac, MI

Healthy Start/Healthy Families Oakland is an award-winning, evidence-based, fully-credentialed Healthy Families America home-visiting program that provides home-based education and support services to nearly 250 vulnerable families throughout the 900 square mile community of Oakland County, Michigan, one of three counties that make up the metro-Detroit area. The goals of the program, utilizing 25 highly trained staff, are to strengthen family stability, prevent child abuse and neglect and promote healthy child growth and development from birth to age 5. Since its formation in 1994, Healthy Start has provided services to more than 2,000 high-risk mothers and fathers and their young children.

Healthy Start carries out its mission through a collaborative partnership led by St. Joseph Mercy Oakland, a Pontiac, Michigan-based community and safety-net hospital and member of Trinity Health, the country's fourth largest Catholic health system. Other partner organizations include Jewish Family Service (which provides a wide range of community services), Carehouse of Oakland County (the Child Abuse and Neglect Council), Oakland Livingston Human Service Agency (a Michigan Community Action Agency) and Centro Multicultural La Familia (a bilingual social service agency in downtown Pontiac). Additionally, Healthy Start partners with the Oakland County Public Health Division and the Michigan Department of Community Health.

Summit County Youth & Family Services | Back to Top |

Frisco, CO

Summit County Youth and Family Services is dedicated to serving the unique needs of families and their children. Our staff and volunteers provide human services oriented programs to at-risk individuals, children and parents who face the challenges of maintaining a positive lifestyle. The department works a hand in hand with Social Services, Public Health Nursing, Early Childhood Options, the Family Intercultural Resource Center, Summit Prevention Alliance, Head Start and numerous local agencies to provide a continuum of services from early prevention and intervention through treatment and aftercare. Youth and Family Services offer a wide array of prevention and intervention programs to the community. Common to our programs is the emphasis given to the importance of community identification of need and support as stated in County public policy to "promote the health and well-being of children, families and individuals in our community." Families are embedded within a broader-based community and it is the community which is the major source of support and resource for meeting needs. Youth and Family Services believe it is the responsibility of the entire community of Summit County to provide support for the overarching goal of giving children and parents the resources and support they need to live a positive and healthy lifestyle.

Please visit us online at www.co.summit.co.us.

Volunteers of America of Indiana | Back to Top |
Indianapolis, IN

Volunteers of America of Indiana is a faith-based, not-for-profit agency founded in 1896. We are an affiliate of Volunteers of America, a national human services agency located in forty-four (44) states across the country. Our mission is to Offer Hope, Restore Dignity and Transform the Lives of the people we have the honor of serving.

For the past twenty-five (25) years we have assisted thousands of men and women in successfully navigating the difficult transition from prison to returning home to their families. We provide services to help our clients gain and maintain employment, find housing, and recover from substance use and mental illness. Our Healing Families program works with mothers, their children and their children's caregivers to ease the challenges of community re-entry after incarceration. The Healing Families program was granted the Annie E. Casey Foundation's Family Strengthening award in 2006 and continues to set the standard for high-quality family services for previously incarcerated individuals. In addition, we have a cadre of services, including transitional housing, for homeless veterans in partnership with our local VA hospitals. Our deep compassion integrated with our highly effective programs and services, allow us to touch the mind, body, heart and ultimately the spirit of those we serve.

Women's Hope Medical Clinic | Back to Top |
Auburn, AL

Women's Hope Medical Clinic is a nonprofit crisis intervention agency providing accurate educational information about pregnancy, STI testing and treatment, lifestyle issues, parenting and relationship education programs and mentoring opportunities, all at no charge to the client. Women's Hope Medical Clinic serves residents of Lee County, AL and surrounding areas. Located in Auburn, a college community, we serve a high percentage of university students in addition to high school and middle school students. Historically, 81% of our clients are single or divorced, from low-income households while 60-65% are either uninsured or on Medicaid. Ethnic makeup of our 2009 clients was 55% African-American, 31% Caucasian, 6% Asian, 6% Hispanic and 2% other.

Please visit us online at www.womenshope.org.

2011 Capacity-Building Awardees

Awardee Narratives

Past Awardees

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