Champions for Children

CFC Auxiliary “Meet & Greet” Event – You’re invited!

Jessica DuChene — Tue, 21 May 2013 13:15:49 +0000

Mark your calendars NOW for our Auxiliary’s upcoming “Meet & Greet” event and join in all the fun. All of the details are below, but please feel free to contact the CFC Development Department at 813.673.4646 x.1112 (Maria) or x.1113 (Jessica) for more information.

To learn more about the CFC Auxiliary, please visit the “CFC Auxiliary” page listed under the “About Us” tab.

Baby Bungalow Client Testimonials

Jessica DuChene — Fri, 10 May 2013 21:46:52 +0000

Earlier this morning, a nanny walked into our Baby Bungalow and handed two of our Baby Bungalow staff members a personalized, hand written thank you card.

Champions for Children would like to share what was written in these thank you cards, as it truly shows what a difference our Baby Bungalow program makes in our community.

Meet Sheryl La Rue, Baby Bungalow’s Developmental Screening Coordinator

Dear Ms. Sheryl:

You are a recent addition to the Baby Bungalow staff – it was a strong, knowledgeable staff, nurturing & caring – but yet you added so much more to it with your expertise & personality.

Not only has your expertise & smile meant a lot to (child’s name) & I, but when I discussed my 3 yr old grandson’s speech problem you were so “resourceful” – once again a staff member of Baby Bungalow went above & beyond in their job! Baby Bungalow has a strong supportive staff – you all respect one another, interact well – I hope any other team member(s) they add to the programs have as much to offer parents & students as you do!

Thank you & God bless you – you truly make a difference each & every day. Sincerely, (A Baby Bungalow client)

P.S. Please feel free to share my note with your administration – they can never hear enough about how great & appreciated you are.

Meet Joanne Ruddy, Baby Bungalow Child Development Specialist

Dearest Ms. Joanne:

A class – “Wonder Years” – such an appropriate title – each class “I wondered” what “life lesson/skill” you would be teaching!

Creative, Nurturing, so focused on each & every child – reminded me of how my Mom would always say “Moms have lots of eyes to see everything & little birdies to tell them everything” – this describes you – no matter how large your class was, always filled to capacity, you knew what each child was doing, needed to learn or excelled at.

You spoke to the class as a whole, yet took extra time & effort to comment to each & every child during class – every class. You were firm but so loving. You were a pro in every situation – from one child hitting another, to sharing, to taking turns, to manners, to kind words & so on. Before & after class I often asked you for advice on potty training, or a phase (child’s name) was in, etc. You gave me “right on” suggestions or approaches to use with him. Thank you. God bless you.

Please share my comments with administration . . . They too need to know how Awesome, spectacular, wonderful, etc. you are – a true asset to the Baby Bungalow staff.

Sincerely, (A Baby Bungalow client)

ABC Action News Story featuring Champions for Children & Executive Director, Brian McEwen

Jessica DuChene — Tue, 07 May 2013 21:20:45 +0000

Yesterday, Champions for Children had a visit from the team over at ABC Action News; they stopped by to speak with our Executive Director, Brian McEwen, about his thoughts on a child abuse situation that resulted in the recent death of a 2 year old in Pinellas County.

As you will see within this video, ABC Action News wanted to provide information on different resources available within our community that work towards preventing these kind of tragic events from happening. Brian shared the mission of Champions for Children, information on our programs and how our agency works everyday towards eliminating child abuse and building stronger families in our community.

We want the Tampa Bay region to know that there is someone out there working towards the prevention of this happening again and its Champions for Children.

CSSME Research Symposium at UT

Jessica DuChene — Tue, 07 May 2013 20:53:51 +0000

Each year, two students randomly selected from Dr. Norma Winston’s Sociology class at the University of Tampa do a content analysis of the student letters written as a follow up to the Kids on the Block (KOTB) performance. These letters from students were coded to see if the students wrote about any of the three main themes presented at the KOTB child abuse and bullying prevention programs. The evaluation from this year’s study showed that 80% of student letters showed learned concepts and that KOTB met or has exceeded that goal since this evaluation process began.

In the pictures below, you will see that Champions for Children’s Executive Director, Brian McEwen, and KOTB Program Director, Trish Sandag, visited the students from Dr. Winston’s class who were presenting their findings at the CSSME Research Symposium at UT on May 1st to show their support.

Thank you to Dr. Norma Winston for her continued support, as well as establishing this yearly collaboration between the University of Tampa and Champions for Children.

[Show as slideshow]

Highlight of Baby Cafe Lactation Services

Jessica DuChene — Wed, 01 May 2013 19:57:14 +0000

Alex Boyer, Program Director for CFC’s “A Better Childbirth”/abcProgram, is excited to share that the Success 4 Kids & Families (S4KF) Annual Report features a highlight of the Baby Café lactation service with a client testimonial. What great news for Champions for Children, the “A Better Childbirth” program, Alex Boyer and her staff!

If you would like to read the S4KF Annual Report and see our agency highlight, please click on the link below. (Our mention is located on page 10 of the report.)

S4KF_AR2012_FINAL

Blue Jeans Friday

Jessica DuChene — Wed, 01 May 2013 19:47:20 +0000

Last week, the Children’s Advocacy Center asked our staff to wear blue jeans on the last Friday in April to show our support of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Thank you to the staff who participated and are pictured here.

CFC recognized by Tampa Bay Business Journal

Jessica DuChene — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:30:21 +0000

Last week, Champions for Children was recognized by the Tampa Bay Business Journal as a finalist in the “bigger” category at its “Best Places To Work” luncheon award event. Champions for Children would like to thank the Tampa Bay Business Journal for this acknowledgment. Check out this printed article outlining all the finalists in the bigger category. Congratulations to all the finalists and the winner in our category. And thank you to all our Champions for Children staff for making our agency a great place to work!

Champions for Children to participate in BAM! Bookfair Event

Jessica DuChene — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:14:58 +0000

Come out and support Champions for Children by visiting the Brandon location of Books A Million on Saturday, April 27th, anytime from 12:00 pm to 5:00 pm to help support Champions for Children with our BAM! Bookfair Event.

*In order for your purchase to go towards Champions for Children, you will need to present the cashier with a voucher listing Champions for Children’s Bookfair ID#. Please click below to download a PDF copy of this voucher.

CFC Voucher for BAM Bookfair – 4.27.13

How can you help?

Spread the news! Please forward this onto any family, friends, coworkers, etc. that you think would be interested. (Especially your contacts in the Brandon area, please and thank you.)
Stop by yourself to purchase a book and visit Jessica; the Brandon location of Books A Million is located at the Brandon Town Center Mall. Here is the address: 839 Brandon Town Center Mall, Brandon, FL 33511-4798

Please contact Jessica DuChene at 813.673.4646 x.1113 or jduchene@cfctb.org if you have any questions. We hope to see you there!

Jessica DuChene — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 14:16:20 +0000

Last week, the Children’s Board Family Resource Center in Brandon held a ribbon cutting event to celebrate the Brandon center as an official Baby Cafe location. Champions for Children’s A Better Childbirth program and its staff were just some of the smiling faces seen showing their support at this event. Check out this great picture from the actual ribbon cutting portion of the celebration.

The Children’s Board Family Resource Center in Brandon is located at 1271 Kingsway Road. Stop by today to visit and learn more about the services offered at this location.

Champions for Children Volunteer Recognition Celebration for 2012

Jessica DuChene — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:35:37 +0000

Please join us for our upcoming Volunteer Recognition Celebration for all of our oustanding volunteers in 2012. RSVPs required; please contact Jessica DuChene at 813.673.4646 x.1113 or jduchene@cfctb.org. We hope to see you there!