Better Together took a giant leap toward our goal of serving families throughout the state of Florida. On Sunday, May 21, The Grove Church in Titusville opened its doors and hearts to our mission, locking arms with us on the journey of expanding our services to families on the Treasure Coast and Space Coast.
The Grove Church has been an amazing partner in launching this new chapter of Better Together. Our new East Central Florida region begins with Brevard, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties.
The need in this area is great. In any given month, based on state data from the past year, these five counties have more than 1,200* children in out-of-home care, a designation that largely includes foster care and group homes. In all cases, each number represents a child no longer in the care of their parents.
Most children in foster care were removed from their families not due to physical or sexual violence but due to factors such as neglect, drug abuse and inadequate housing—preventable situations when the right supports are in place. Their parents love them but don’t have the resources and support they need to succeed.
We’re on a mission to strengthen families and prevent the need for foster care in the first place.
Over the course of three services at The Grove Church, 50 families signed up to volunteer. We are incredibly grateful for this strong start. By August, we expect to be serving our first families on the Treasure Coast and Space Coast.
“The Grove Church is excited to partner with Better Together and its efforts to keep children out of foster care,” Community Pastor Barry Russell says. “Christ has specifically called the church to fill this gap in James 1:27, ‘Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.’ We look forward to seeing how God uses this organization, the church and local families to be the hands and feet of Jesus!”
As Better Together expands throughout Florida, we are also hiring. Please share our Career Opportunities page with anyone you think might be a good fit for our team.
*The average number of children in out-of-home care from May 2022 to April 2023 in Brevard, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River and Okeechobee counties was 1,270, according to the Florida Office of Child and Family Well-Being Dashboard.
Posted June 1, 2023
