Panera Bread franchise owners Gavin and Annette Ford long ago looked for what they could do for foster kids in Florida. Their solution was to open their doors and proceeds. The couple offers mentoring and a summer jobs program. In the past year, through their business they’ve donated almost $400,000 to local charities, including those that help foster children.

Earlier this month, the couple got creative with their philanthropy. According to the Orlando Sentinel, their Panera Bread restaurants in Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake, Brevard, Volusia, Martin, Indian River and St. Lucie counties, the Fords sold a ribbon-shaped blueberry bagel pastry custom created for foster kids.

They didn’t donate a portion of the proceeds for the kids. All of money from the “Blue Ribbon Bagel” sale was slated for the Foundation for Foster Children.

Florida Department of Children and Families’ central region spokeswoman Carrie Hoeppner said the Fords’ contributions and support is nothing short of extraordinary. “What always impresses us the most is that they do not do this for the recognition,” she told the Sentinel. ”They do these things because it is in their heart.”

They they received acknowledgement from DCF and Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll.

Organizations like the Foundation for Foster Children, Florida’s Children First, the state’s leading advocacy organization for foster and at-risk children, and others work to improve the lives and opportunities for vulnerable kids throughout Florida.

We are surrounded by children in need. But we also are surrounded by ways to help. As the Fords showed, a commitment to help starts with the desire to do good. That can come through volunteering, mentoring, hiring a foster kid, or baking and selling a special bagel for special kids in need of some help.

What can you do?

If you’re a child or an advocate for a child in the foster care system, Florida Child Advocate is here to help.

This site was created by the law firm of Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate, P.A., and nationally known Florida child advocate Howard Talenfeld to protect children and to address key issues facing those with foster care, physical abuse, child sexual abuse, social services, dependency, disability or personal injury and damages claims or lawsuits against the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF), agencies and other child welfare providers. We believe that children belong with their own families. However, we also believe that when protective investigations by the Florida DCF and its agencies reveal that children are at high risk of neglect, child sex abuse or physical abuse by their parents, they must be placed with suitable relatives when they are available, and if not, some children must be placed in foster care. Critically, if children are going to be taken into foster care, they should be protected by the Florida Department of Children & Families and their community partners from the risk of physical and sexual abuse and returned home or placed in loving and nurturing adoptive families as quickly as possible. Topics also include the rights of foster Children to be safe from harm in care, their right to medical, psychological care, and disability benefits, their educational rights, and their rights on the road to independence.

Florida Child Advocate.com, The Florida Foster Care Survival Guide, is your one-stop resource designed to help protect the rights of children under the state’s care – and guide the families who love them, the caregivers who serve them, guardians who advocate for them, and the attorneys who counsel them.

This site offers the most exhaustive and up-to-date collection of resources available on the Internet and contact information for various government, social service and independent agencies. We also try to provide help understanding children’s legal rights as they pertain to foster care dependency, damages or disability claims.

We answer important questions, and show how to:

- Get medical and psychological care and disabilities benefits
- Understand foster children’s rights
- Achieve permanency
- Redress damages so that children who are harmed in care can get the help they need before and after they turn 18.
- Find whom to turn to

Helping protect the rights of children, the developmentally disabled and other vulnerable persons in state care is vital. And it’s the core mission of The Florida Foster Care Survival Guide. Explore and learn more today. Please feel free to Contact Us with any additional questions.

Every foster child needs attention. Let Florida Child Advocate.com be your first step toward resolution.

DeJesus had been accused of beating, stabbing and raping the boy’s mother, who, in turn once told authorities the couple had repeatedly molested the boy and his older brother, the Miami Herald reported.

Now, Broward Sheriff’s detectives and child welfare advocates are left to investigate the pieces in an attempt to discern whether another horrible tragedy could have been avoided.

FCF, the statewide legal advocacy organization focused on protecting the legal rights of at-risk and foster care children, recognized supporters and groups committed to helping Florida’s most vulnerable children. The event was held on March 22 in Fort Lauderdale.

The event recognized this year’s Broward Child Advocate honorees. They included Broward County Bar Association Past-President Bruce Weihe; Broward County Bar Association President Jordana Goldstein; and Tracey McPharlin Pro Bono Dependency Recruitment Project Director David Bazerman.

“Florida’s Children First Broward Awards honor those who give of their time and expertise in helping children across the county. But it’s so much more than that,” said Howard Talenfeld, FCF President and Fort Lauderdale children’s rights attorney, who hosted the event with FCF Executive Director Christina Spudeas. “Each year, the event showcases the change that advocates who are committed to a cause can bring on behalf of those whose voices cannot be heard. Tracey would be proud of the legacy of advocacy that lives on in her honor.”

Honorees were selected for their work with the McPharlin project, named for the long-time child advocate attorney who passed away in 2010. The project is a collaborative effort of the Broward County Bar Association, Legal Aid Service of Broward County Inc., The 17th Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Committee, and Florida’s Children First. The project’s goal is to recruit, train and support pro bono attorneys who represent children in Dependency Court. To date, more than 80 attorneys have been trained and now volunteer to take cases on behalf of children.

Also recognized at the event were this year’s Youth Advocate honorees Stephen Satchell and Tamarra Lestage. Both are former foster children and today are college students and members of the Broward Chapter of Florida Youth SHINE (FYS), a youth advocacy organization for children in and aging out of Florida’s foster care system.

Event sponsors included Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate; Eckerd Family Foundation; Patriot National Insurance Group; Broward County Bar Association Young Lawyers Section; Wells Fargo; Lifestyle Publications; Daily Business Review; Boardroom Communications; G4S Secure Solutions (USA) Inc., and Guardian Trust; among others.

In one case, a 16-year-old girl who cannot talk or walk and needs help breathing part of the day, lives “warehoused” by the state in a Plantation nursing and rehabilitation center, says her attorney, who filed the case in federal court in Fort Lauderdale. She’s one of 250 such disabled or severely sick children Florida pays to keep in nursing homes – when alternatives exist. Their families would prefer them to be at home or in the community.

The lawsuit claims Florida keeps these sick and disabled kids trapped in nursing homes and institutions by denying services, “even when doctors have cleared them to go home with their families,” the Sun-Sentinel reported of the suit.

In a separate suit, a second group of families claim the opposite – fearing 3,300 at-risk children living at home may be forced into institutions or nursing homes if Florida Medicaid denies services.

Lawyers claim the law is on the plaintiffs’ side. The Americans With Disabilities Act and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling require states provide services that keep such individuals in the least restrictive settings possible, the paper reported. Read the entire story here.

On a high note, a Florida pilot program has advocates pushing other states to try. Here, advocates say children with attorneys move through the system faster.

“A pilot program in Palm Beach County showed children with effective counsel in dependency cases found permanent homes at about twice the rate of unrepresented children,” the AP wrote. “The program, which has 14 attorneys with an average caseload of 35 kids, works with about 800 foster children a year, costing taxpayers about $1.7 million. Advocates say that’s less than what the state would pay for extended stays in foster care. Florida spends between $150 to $200 a day to care for each child.”

The AP continued, “The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently awarded a $5 million grant to the University of Michigan to study how to better connect foster children with legal help. The American Bar Association recently wrote legislation and is urging lawmakers in several states, including Florida, to require attorneys for all foster children.”

Read the entire story here.

Then, in September 2010, the estranged husband, Patrick Dell, kicked in her door and shot dead Whyte-Dell and three of her children and injured a fourth before killing himself.

Now, Michael Barnett, father of the three children, is suing DCF for negligence. Read the entire story here.

In the case of a 6-year-old girl, the DCF says she and her sibling are safe now. But her mother had traded the girl for sex to get drugs.

“You know in my seven and a half years with DCF, we’ve never seen a case like this,” DCF spokesman John Harrell told WOKV.

Now, as with all cases of possible sex abuse and child abuse, the DCF owes it to the little girl to do a thorough investigation. Authorities also are giving the girl counseling.

“But we want to make sure that the child does not have to recount what happened to many times,” he says.

Now, adults around these vulnerable children have to speak up. “There’s a lot of child sexual abuse that goes unreported. That’s unacceptable.”

Reporting child abuse and sexual abuse is required by law. If you suspect something is going on, call DCF at 1-800-96-ABUSE.

It’s a complicated case. State child welfare administrators describe the parents – Edward Bailey and Marsee Strong – as loving parents who deserve to get their children back after the kids’ brief stay in foster care.

Administrators also urged prosecutors to seek the couple’s release from jail, telling Miami Judge Cindy Lederman that the couple had not harmed their children. Yet, the boy has told his doctors he’s afraid to go home.

There should be no rush to return this boy to his family until the truth comes out. Read the entire story here.

FCF Executive Director Christina Spudeas, along with FCF President and Fort Lauderdale children’s rights attorney Howard Talenfeld, will lead the event. It is expected to draw more than 300 child advocates, elected officials, judges and community and business leaders. Kristi Krueger, WPLG Local 10 Anchor, will serve as mistress of ceremonies.

The evening will recognize and honor supporters of The Tracey McPharlin Pro Bono Dependency Recruitment Initiative, named in honor of the long-time child advocate attorney who passed away in 2010. The event also will recognize this year’s Broward Child Advocate honorees, including Broward County Bar Association past president Bruce Weihe; Broward County Bar Association President Jordana Goldstein; and Tracey McPharlin Pro Bono Dependency Recruitment Project Director David Bazerman.

These honorees were all selected for their work in support of the McPharlin Initiative, a collaborative effort of the Broward County Bar Association, Legal Aid Service of Broward County Inc., The 17th Judicial Circuit Pro Bono Committee, and Florida’s Children First to recruit, train and support pro bono attorneys who represent children in Dependency Court. More than 80 attorneys have been trained and now volunteer to take cases on behalf of children.

“Florida’s most vulnerable children need the expertise of impassioned attorneys, advocates and organizations who give thousands of hours their behalf,” Talenfeld said. “As a profession, the legal community should be proud of these outstanding individuals – and none more so than Tracey McPharlin, whose legacy of advocacy continues today.”

Also being lauded are this year’s Youth Advocate honorees Stephen Satchell and Tamarra Lestage – former foster children being recognized for their determination and inspiration. Both today are college students and members of the Broward Chapter of Florida Youth SHINE (FYS), a youth advocacy organization for children in and aging out of Florida’s foster care system.

Last year’s event, also held at The Tower Club (atop One Financial Plaza at 100 Southeast Third Ave., in Fort Lauderdale), was attended by more than 200 people and raised more than $100,000 for the organization. A $100 contribution is suggested, with all proceeds to benefit Florida’s Children First. To RSVP, call 954-796-0860 or send an email to fcf@floridaschildrenfirst.org.

Florida’s Children First thanks its sponsors Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate; Eckerd Family Foundation; Patriot National Insurance Group; Broward County Bar Association Young Lawyers Section; Wells Fargo; Lifestyle Publications; Daily Business Review; Boardroom Communications; and Guardian Trust; among others.