• Health in the Hood ($25,000) JLM funding supported nine urban farms in Miami’s urban core that provide free, healthy food for families living in food deserts, host regular nutrition, fitness and gardening workshops to inspire and encourage the community to adopt healthier habits, providing healthy grocery boxes to families who are food insecure.
• Health Information Project ($25,000) JLM funding  empowered area 11^th and 12^th graders to lead important physical and emotional health conversations about topics like being empowered to get out of an abusive relationship, stop using drugs, or being able to better manage their stress with their 9^th grade peers.  They work in all 57 M-DCPS high schools as well as several private schools.
• Project Ready for School ($25,000) JLM funding provided school-aged children with food to take home each weekend when they don’t have access to school breakfast and lunch funds allowed the expansion of a program to a new location.
• Village (Free)dge ($25,000) JLM funding fed 150-200 families per day with a walk-in hot breakfast with coffee, and created a 3-tier food bag system to get families and individuals through the day, depending on level of need.
• Buddy System MIA ($25,000) JLM funding improved food security and accessibility throughout Miami-Dade County, including providing homebound food delivery for immunocompromised and differently abled individuals, as well as creation and maintenance (weatherproofing and stocking) of community pantries and fridges that are outside and accessible 24/7, especially helping differently abled individuals to receive food rescued and donated, and provided large-scale food distributions.
• Chapman Partnership ($22,000) JLM funding supported Chapman Buddies, a year-round mentoring program whose mission is to build resilience in school-aged children during their emergency shelter stay at Chapman Partnership, a shelter for those experiencing homelessness.  Children are paired with an advocate during their stay who serves as a source of inspiration and encouragement.
• Seeking Shelter ($24,000) JLM funding funded their Shelter-In-Place program, which provides people experiencing homelessness with essential items such as food, shoes, clothes, tents, and hygiene products.
• Uplift Literacy ($20,000) JLM funding supported their book distribution program, which sends books home, along with reading comprehension questions with each student throughout the school year and over the summer.
• Camillus House ($25,000) JLM funding provided resources to Miami-Dade residents who are experiencing homelessness, specifically to support their Day Center, which works to provide basic needs of our most marginalized and underserved demographics with hot meals and comprehensive support services.

• Uplift Literacy ($18,000) – JLM funding supports family literacy events, reading and literacy tutoring in schools by trained volunteers, take-home books, educational supplies, background checks for volunteers, literacy tips for parents.
• Miami Diaper Bank ($18,000) – JLM funding helps them get bulk-rate diapers and helps the organization provide diapers directly to food banks, community health centers, homeless shelters, youth and family service agencies as well as pop up distributions and mobile diaper distributions.
• Belafonte Tacolcy Center ($15,700)- JLM funding creates sustainable community gardens, enhance gardening skills within the community, provided lessons for 60 kids, and some professional upkeep.
• Zoo Miami Foundation ($10,000) – JLM funding created a one of a kind summer program, “Eco Explorers,” that welcomed 15 middle school girls interested in STEM fields to explore Zoo Miami.  Students participated in hands-on, team activities like water data collection, slough slogs, dip netting, species data collection and invasive fish dissection.  Students connected with specialists and experts in their fields, and the program concludes with a presentation of their research on a topic of their choosing.  This unique opportunity was designed to encourage women in science, technology, engineering and math.  The goal of the program was to create young female leaders who are passionate about education and the environment.
• Feeding South Florida ($25,000) – JLM funding started a school pantry program in South Florida to provide access to food after the school day has ended, with the intention of offering pantries in easily accessible areas which are dignified to visit.  The program provides not only stable pantry items (dry and canned goods), but also fresh vegetables, fruits and nutritious options that are often of reach for those living in crisis or poverty.

Kristi House’s Client Emergency Expenses Project, $10,000

• Kristi House’s mission is dedicated to treating and preventing child sexual

abuse, trafficking and other childhood trauma, working closely with

community partners, parents and providers. They are the nationally

accredited, state-designated Child Advocacy Center responsible for all of

Miami-Dade County. As such, they focus on healing the victims, holding

the perpetrators responsible, educating children and adults, and

coordinating the systems of investigation, prosecution and treatment.

● JLM funds would go toward their food security program of “Client

Emergency Expenses”

Branches’ Hot Dinner Project, $14,700

• Branches provides life-changing opportunities to hardworking families and their children to help them break the cycle of generational poverty. Branches’ mission is to serve, educate and inspire people through student, family and financial wellness services in partnership with communities

• JLM funds will help continue to provide 13920 dinners for program participants (kindergarten to post-secondary students) and others in need of a meal at the Branches Florida City program site during.(1 hot dinner for about 290 Kindergarten to post-secondary students once per week for 42 weeks from July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026 and at Summer Shade Camp.)

EatWell Exchange’s Culinary Program, $25,000

• The EatWell Exchange’s mission is to empower lower socioeconomic communities with the access, knowledge and confidence they need to eat a nutritious diet within their own food culture.

• The Family Culinary Program emphasizes health and wellness for women and children while fostering community empowerment. Through hands-on education in cooking, gardening, and nutrition, we address food insecurity and support long-term health in economically disadvantaged areas of Miami-Dade County, including Liberty City, Miami Gardens, and Hialeah.

●JLM Funds would go towards Cooking Classes, Materials & Supplies, Educational Materials, Community Garden Supplies & Materials,Program Implementation and Participant Incentives & Rewards.

Children’s Bereavement Center’s Children’s Village at Lotus House, $25,000

• Children’s Bereavement Center’s mission is to empower children, young adults and their families to adjust to life after the loss of a loved one within a supportive community of their peers and to promote healthful grief, healing and growth. The Lotus House is the largest women’s homeless shelter in the country sheltering 1,550+ women, youth and children annually.

• JLM funds support the implementation of their grief support programming at the Children’s Village at Lotus House.

• This program would engage licensed mental health and art/music therapists, and programing materials and supplies.

Voices for Children’s Comfort Closet Project, $15,000

• Voices For Children Foundation has supported the Statewide Guardian ad Litem

Office/Circuit Eleven since 1984, ensuring Miami-Dade foster children ages from

birth to age 22 years receive advocacy representation in Dependency Court.

• The Comfort Closet at Voices provides essential hygiene products, dignity items,

and other basic necessities (including toys, school supplies, pajamas, grooming tools for teens, etc)to children entering and in foster care.

Chapman Partnership’s Chapman Buddies Mentorship and Field Trip Program with Florida Grand Opera, $15,000

• Chapman Partnership’s mission is to provide comprehensive programs and services, in collaboration with others, that empowers those they serve – early childhood to career – with dignity and respect to overcome homelessness and to achieve and maintain long-term self-sufficiency and independence.

• Chapman Buddies is a year-round mentoring program implemented within the context of a Homeless Assistance Center with the goal of building the resilience of 350 school-aged children during their emergency shelter stay. Within Chapman Partnership’s emergency shelter setting, a strengths-based, responsive approach is used when working with families. For children, the approach focuses on developmental assets, a theoretically-based and research-grounded set of opportunities, experiences, and supports that researchers have tied to promoting school success, reducing risk behaviors, and increasing socially-valued outcomes including prosocial behavior, leadership, and resilience. For children exposed to ACEs, such as homelessness, resilience is a key developmental asset that can help them adapt and thrive despite coping with hardship. Research indicates that a child’s resilience mostly depends on their connections to other people, such as Mentors who leave an indelible mark upon their lives.

• The objective of Chapman Buddies is to pair an FRC staff member with school-aged children participating in the FRC to serve as a “mentor”, namely an advocate during their emergency shelter experience. The advocate is a source of inspiration and encouragement for children

• JLM Funds will support Chapman Buddies and broaden the mentoring approach in Summer 2025 to include a key partnership with the Florida Grand Opera (FGO), performing their Bear Hug! performance at their two Homeless Assistance Centers in July 2025. Bear Hug! is an opera designed for elementary and middle school students that teaches about kindness, feelings and emotions.

• JLM Funds will also let enrollees earn points for positive behavior to “purchase” educational books, games, new articles of clothing,etc.

• Participant Field Trips: once monthly field trips during the school year and once weekly field trips during the summer (18 total). Fieldtrip locations include educational venues such as Miami Children’s Museum, Frost Museum of Science, Everglades National Park, and Zoo Miami, with a focus on STEAM exposure to broaden participants’ horizons on Miami-Dade County’s rich arts and sciences culture.

JUNIOR LEAGUE OF MIAMI GIVES OUT $216,000 IN COMMUNITY GRANTS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 9, 2023

MEDIA CONTACT: Laura Van Gorden, President, Junior League of Miami, 305.479.0277

MIAMI-DADE – As the Junior League of Miami approaches its Centennial Celebration in 2026, the League has brought back their community grant program, awarding $216,000 in grants to deserving non-profits in our community.  The grants aim to address some of the toughest challenges facing women and children at risk in Miami-Dade County including food insecurity, education, homelessness and literacy.

After receiving more than 30 applications, the following organizations were awarded up to $25,000 each for their programming: Buddy System MIA, Camillus House, Chapman Partnership, Health Information Project, Health in the Hood, Project Ready for School, Seeking Shelter, Uplift Literacy and Village (FREE)dge.

 The programming that will be funded by the grants with the aforementioned organizations includes: urban farming and wellness programs, food distribution for families facing food insecurity & experiencing homelessness, peer-to-peer mentoring for high school students, a weekend backpack food program at a local elementary school, infrastructure for community fridges and food distribution sites, mentoring programs for children in emergency homeless shelters, essential items such as tents, shoes and hygiene items for people experiencing homelessness, and a book distribution program to encourage literacy and learning year-round. The grants were awarded at the Junior League’s annual meeting in May, where all recipients were in attendance.

The Junior League of Miami has committed to using all funds raised on Give Miami Day to fund community grants, along with a dollar-for-dollar match from the Junior League of Miami’s Foundation, doubling the impact in the community. The League anticipates funding at least $100,000 in grants each year going forward.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to fund some of the amazing programs benefiting our Miami community, specifically around our added focus area of food insecurity,” said Laura Van Gorden, President of the Junior League of Miami. “More than one in 10 people experience food insecurity in Miami-Dade County, which has only gotten worse since the pandemic. Our partnership with Food Rescue US has allowed Junior League members to contribute to reducing food insecurity through individual food rescues from area grocery stores and restaurants, and food distribution events in underserved neighborhoods. The addition of grant-giving to our community programming has allowed us to expand our reach and create a larger impact in our community.”

Founded in 1926, the Junior League of Miami focuses on making a significant impact within the areas of food insecurity, homelessness, family violence, children’s and women’s health, early childhood education, and foster care with the ultimate goal of building a better community for Miami-Dade County. Teaming up with community partners, the League has helped develop Guardian Ad Litem, the Children’s Home Society, the original Miami Science Museum, INN Transition and a multitude of other projects.

About the Junior League of Miami

 The Junior League of Miami, Inc. is an organization of women whose mission is to advance women’s leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable. For more information, please contact the Junior League office at 305.443.0160 or visit www.jlmiami.org.

The next community grant cycle opens in September 2023. For more information or to get on the mailing list, please contact programdevelopment@jlmiami.org.

JUNIOR LEAGUE OF MIAMI GIVES OUT OVER $100,000 IN GRANTS TO COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS SERVING OUR CITY AS THEY APPROACH 100 YEARS OF SERVICE TO THE MIAMI COMMUNITY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MAY 21, 2024

MEDIA CONTACT: Laura Van Gorden, President, Junior League of Miami, 305.479.0277

MIAMI-DADE –  The Junior League of Miami has committed to providing more than $100,000 in grants annually to deserving community organizations through the celebration of their Centennial in 2026.  Over the last two years, the Junior League has provided more than $325,000 in grants. The grants aim to address the needs of women and children at risk in Miami-Dade County in the areas of food insecurity, literacy, education, diapers and hygiene products, and foster care.

After receiving more than 30 applications, the following organizations were awarded up to $25,000 each for their programming: Belafonte Tacolcy Center, Feeding South Florida, Miami Diaper Bank, Uplift Literacy and Zoo Miami Foundation.

The grants will go directly to programming focused on initiatives like community gardens, school pantries, diapers and baby essentials, book distribution and reading programs to encourage early literacy and year-round learning, and a STEM camp for young women. The grants were awarded this week at the Junior League’s Annual Meeting on May 14, which was attended by key members of all recipient organizations.

The Junior League of Miami has committed to using all money raised on Give Miami Day to fund community grants, along with a dollar-for-dollar match from the Junior League of Miami’s Foundation, doubling the impact in the community.

“We are thrilled to continue our grant-giving program this year and provide much-needed funds to important community programs – especially within our focus area of food insecurity,” said Laura Van Gorden, President of the Junior League of Miami.  “More than 10% of our community is experiencing food insecurity in Miami-Dade County, including nearly 1 in 5 children. Our continued partnership with Food Rescue South Florida has provided fresh food to 3,000 people this year in neighborhood food distribution events. The addition of grant-giving to our community programming has allowed us to expand our reach and create a larger impact in Miami-Dade County.”

About the Junior League of Miami

The Junior League of Miami, Inc. is a volunteer organization of women whose mission is to advance women’s leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training. Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable.

Founded in 1926, the Junior League of Miami focuses on making a significant impact within the areas of food insecurity, homelessness, family violence, children’s and women’s health, early childhood education, and foster care with the ultimate goal of building a better Miami-Dade County community. Teaming up with community partners, the League has helped develop Guardian Ad Litem, the Children’s Home Society, the original Miami Science Museum, INN Transition and a multitude of other projects.

For more information, please contact the Junior League office at 305.443.0160 or visit www.jlmiami.org.

The next community grant cycle opens in September 2024.  For more information or to get on the mailing list, please contact programdevelopment@jlmiami.org

Press Release for 2025-2026 Grants

**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**  

**Junior League of Miami Awards Over $100,000 in Community Grants to Local Nonprofits**  

*Funding Supports Critical Programs Addressing Food Insecurity, Child Welfare, Homelessness, and Mental Health*  

**Miami, FL  June 12, 2025** – The Junior League of Miami (JLM) is proud to announce the awarding of over $100,000 in community grants to six Miami-based nonprofit organizations. These grants will support vital initiatives addressing food insecurity, child welfare, grief counseling, foster care support, mentorship for families experiencing homelessness, and targeted literacy programming. Funding for these grants was matched 1:1 by the Junior League of Miami Foundation. Since 2023, Junior League of Miami has given over $320,000 in grants to Miami nonprofits.

“On the precipice of our Centennial, the Junior League of Miami is committed to creating lasting, positive change in our community,” said Ava Habif, President of the Junior League of Miami. “By investing in these organizations, we are helping to provide essential resources, education, and emotional support to some of Miami’s most vulnerable populations. We are honored to partner with these incredible nonprofits to make a meaningful difference in the lives of children and families for another 100 years.”  

Previous year grant funding has supported programs, including:

• Teen peer-to-peer health education
• Urban farms and nutrition workshops
• STEM camp for girls
• Emergency expenses for child survivors of sexual abuse
• Reading pals program and literacy fairs
• Sustainable community gardening programs
• New free pantry at high school
• Weekend meals for children relying on food from school
• Daily hot meals for families
• System of community fridges and delivery to homebound people
• Mentorship for children experiencing  homelessness
• Essentials for people experiencing homelessness
• Book distributions
• Day center for people experiencing homelessness
• Diaper procurement and distribution

The Junior League of Miami is also proud to announce the new series of volunteer events in honor of the organization’s Centennial year of service to the Miami community. The Junior League of Miami seeks nonprofit partners serving women and children and/or addressing food insecurity in Miami-Dade County. JLM held an event for potential nonprofit partners to workshop volunteer days and future grant applications. If you know of a nonprofit working towards the betterment of women and children or against food insecurity in Miami that is looking for volunteers and/or funding, please contact DIAD@JLMiami.org.

 **Grant Recipients & Funded Programs:**  

1. **Kristi House – $10,000**  

   Funds will support the **Client Emergency Expenses Project**, providing food security and emergency assistance to child survivors of sexual abuse, trafficking, and trauma. Kristi House is Miami-Dade’s nationally accredited Child Advocacy Center, offering healing, prevention, and justice services.  

2. **Branches – $14,700**  

   Grant funds will help provide **13,920 hot dinners** for students (Kindergarten to post-secondary grades) and families in need at Branches’ Florida City site over 42 weeks, including during Summer Shade Camp.  

3. **EatWell Exchange – $25,000**  

   Funding will support the **Family Culinary Program**, offering hands-on cooking, gardening, and nutrition education to empower low-income women and children in Liberty City, Miami Gardens, and Hialeah to make healthy, culturally relevant food choices.  

4. **Children’s Bereavement Center – $25,000**  

   The grant will fund **grief support programming at the Children’s Village at Lotus House**, providing licensed therapy, art/music therapy, and resources for children and families experiencing homelessness and loss.  

5. **Voices for Children – $15,000**  

   Funds will stock the **Comfort Closet**, supplying foster children with hygiene products, school supplies, pajamas, teen grooming kits, and other essential dignity items.  

6. **Chapman Partnership – $15,000**  

   The grant will support the **Chapman Buddies Mentorship & Field Trip Program**, pairing children experiencing homelessness with mentors and providing educational field trips to venues like the Miami Children’s Museum and Zoo Miami. Funds will also bring the **Florida Grand Opera’s *Bear Hug!*** performance to Chapman’s shelters, teaching emotional resilience through music.  

These grants reflect JLM’s dedication to improving the lives of women and children in Miami-Dade County through strategic community investments. Since its founding in 1926, the Junior League of Miami has contributed millions of dollars and countless volunteer hours to local nonprofits.  The Junior League of Miami has awarded over $300,000 in grants over the past 3 years and plans to award over $500,000 through its Centennial in 2025-2026.

For more information about the Junior League of Miami and its community impact, visit www.jlmiami.org](http://www.jlmiami.org.

**Media Contact:**  

Ava Habif

Junior League of Miami  

pastpresident@jlmiami.org

**About the Junior League of Miami**  

The Junior League of Miami is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women, and improving the community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. Since 1926, JLM has been a driving force behind initiatives that address critical social, educational, and health-related needs in Miami-Dade County.  

*[Optional: Include high-res images of JLM volunteers, grant recipients, or program participants. Caption suggestions: “JLM volunteers distribute meals with Branches” or “Children participate in EatWell Exchange’s culinary classes.”]*  

**End of Release**