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Save the Date For the Eighth Annual Mayor's Ball 2009
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Reception 6:00 PM - 7 PM
Dinner and Dancing Following
Casa Marina Resort and Beach Club, Key West
Come and celebrate 20 years of service to more than 22,000 children, teens, parents and caregivers in our Keys Community!
For table reservations and tickets please call Janey R. Miller @ 305-852-4246 ext.222 or email janeymiller@fkcs.org
Celebrating the Lives of the More Than 22,000 Monroe County
Children, Teens, Parents and Caregivers Receiving Help and Hope
We will keep doing it - we have to! - But we need YOU!
Thank you for believing in the work we do. It is vital to our children in Monroe County. Without the Florida Keys Children's Shelter, many of these kids would literally be on the streets, day after day and without hope of comfort and care. We are still here because so many good people believe in the value of children and families and with their generous support we continue to caringly provide a safe place of help and hope. Thank you!
The spring and summer months have proven to be tough months for our organization. Obviously, the current economy is hitting everyone and that includes us. The financial support of our friends has been a bright spot in what has otherwise been a difficult time.
Our struggle continues...as the need for our services is on the incline, we recently learned one of our major funders has had funding cuts of their own and will now be cutting our financial support in a severe way.
Believe me, this is not a "trickle-down" effect. We have incurred a direct blow to the core. These funding cuts amount to over $250,000 for this year alone and this is a loss from just one funding source. This amount represents about 14% of our budget.
This means we have to find a way to serve our kids and families with increasing needs with much less money to help them. We will do it - we have to. There isn't any other option for these children.
I'm sharing this with you to help you understand how very important your past generosity has been and to ask you to please think of our kids right now and consider making a donation today or in the near future.
Thankfully, we do have faith - faith in good things and good people. We believe every single child has the right to have a safe place to be a child and we really hope you agree - and that you will help us today, as much as you can. You can even make your donation online at www.FKCS.org. Just click the "Donate Now" button! It is that important.
Thank you for encouraging us to remain hopeful as we "keep-on-keeping-on" - one day at a time and most significantly ONE CHILD AT A TIME.
Sincerely,
Janey Rhyan Miller
Chief Development Officer
Florida Keys Children's Shelter
305-852-4246 ext. 222
305-731-4741 cell
janeymiller@fkcs.org
P.S. Whatever their past has been, with your financial help, their tomorrow can be filled with hope. Please send as much as you can to help care for these children. Their little lives are worth investing in!
I am happy to visit further about our important work. If you have questions or would like to learn more about our work, please contact me at 305-852-4246 ext. 222 or by email at janeymiller@fkcs.org at your convenience. Together we are improving lives. Wow, that's a very good thing.
In Memoriam: Edward Vincent Lett III
 With heartfelt sympathies and deep appreciation we would like to thank the Lett family for their past and ongoing support. Ed Lett was a wonderful man. Our thoughts are with his family and friends. Through his kind suggestion, FKCS received many donations in his memory. We are all very grateful for his commitment to this important work and that even in his final days, he was thinking of the children and families we serve.
Edward Vincent Lett III [Ed] of Naples, Florida passed away on Monday, August 17, 2009 in his home. Ed was born in Erie, Pennsylvania on November 24, 1945, son of the late Edward and Gwendolyn [Coolbaugh] Lett. Survivors include his beloved wife Bonney K. Lett; daughter, She.a M. Harrison [Martin] of Stuttgart, Germany and their children Alexis, Austin and Riley; daughter Melissa A. Bechtel [Chris] of Los Angeles, CA and their children Cole, Amelia and Patience; daughter, Ashley P. Huntsberry-Lett of Naples, Fl.; and sister, Marylyn A. Schaarsmith of Chesterfield, VA.
Ed's retirement in February of 2009 capped a forty-one year commitment to an industry that he loved very much. Upon graduating from Doane College in Crete, NE in 1968, he began his career at Marine Midland Bank in New York City as a trainee and junior lending officer in the industrial finance dept. He was then recruited by Maryland National Bank in 1971 as the regional vice president for the Southern Maryland counties of Howard, Prince Georges, and Calvert.Following 16 years in various management positions, and acquiring the title of senior vice president, Ed relocated to Jacksonville, Florida to pursue his passion for community banking with American National Bank. Following his four-year tenure at American National, he was then recruited by TIB Bank of the Keys, which was at the time a 191 million dollar true blue community bank located in the beautiful Florida Keys. In 1994, Ed was promoted to Chief Executive Officer, President, and also became a member of the board of directors. In the ensuing years under Ed's guidance, TIB became the dominant community bank in the Florida Keys and began its expansion onto the mainland. Prior to Ed's retirement in 2009, TIB obtained the position of the third largest publicly traded bank head quartered in Florida, with assets approaching two billion dollars.
Ed was an automobile enthusiast who enjoyed all facets of car ownership including collecting, restoring, and racing. He was a family man who relished time with his growing brood of grandchildren. He had a passion for travel, sailing, and golf. He was loved by many and will truly be missed
In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made to the Florida Keys Children's Shelter, 73 High Point Road, Tavernier, Fl. 33070, www.fkcs.org, or to The American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org.
Brooke Spaulding Helps Launch Project Inspiration
 IFKCS has been "Inspired" by the fabulous talent and enthusiasm of Dr. True and Lisa Lansden and the entire Project Inspiration group. Currently, we have had the honor of working with three local artists, Brooke Spalding, Darryl Norem, and Diane Schleider. Two bedrooms are complete and the third is in progress. Stacy Krupa, Wyland, Adam Rote and other area artist have agreed to be a part of the project. You can read more about Project Inspiration below in the September issue of the Coconut Telegraph.
Project Inspiration "was an idea that just kept bouncing around in my head when I couldn't sleep" says Lisa Lansden of Tavernier. Then this Spring at the Black and
White Ball, Lisa was seated next to William LeDent, Vice President of the Florida Keys Children's Shelter Board.
After discussing the idea with him he introduced Lisa to Bill Mann who works as the Chief Operating Officer with FKCS. With the encouragement and approval of the shelter, she immediately began working out the details and Project Inspiration was born! Lisa is our current Mrs. Florida American Dream and has tackled Project Inspiration as a way to "inspire and be inspired." The project involves local and international artists, one per month, coming to the Florida Keys Children's Shelter to paint murals in the bedrooms with the children.
The children are involved in the concept of what will be painted and in the actual painting itself. There are eight bedrooms total and the first is almost complete! Lisa believes that this is "one of the most rewarding experiences you can imagine! Kathy Tuell, Janey Miller and all of the administration, staff and children at FKCS have been absolutely wonderful to work with and I am excited about the work we will be doing in the coming months."
Five children in the month of August were a part of the project, and according to FKCS, the children are excited and very proud of their work. Brooke Spaulding of Key Largo has been teaching and painting with the children during the month of August. Having known Brooke for the past five years, Lisa says she was one of the first people to come to mind for the Project because of her energy.
For a PowerPoint presentation of photos, click here.
Miami Seaquarium Gives Back! Have Fun and Help FKCS!
FKCS will receive $5.00 donation per guest that presents a properly marked coupon until 11/22/09. Coupons will be available via our E-newsletter and in hard copy at the FKCS office. To download your coupon in PDF format, click here.
FKCS RECEIVES FUNDING FROM WINN-DIXIE FOUNDATION
 The FKCS was among four organizations that received a gift from the Winn-Dixie Foundation on Friday, Aug. 28, 2009. The monetary donations served to support local organizations focused on hunger, women and children, education, and health.
"We realize the importance of giving back to the communities we serve, and it is even more critical in this challenging economy," said Jorge Cabo, district manager for the Keys division of Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. "We are honored to support these worthy organizations that make such a positive difference in the lives of so many."
At a presentation held at a newly remodeled Winn-Dixie store in Key Largo, Fla., Cabo presented oversized checks on behalf of the Winn-Dixie Foundation to representatives from four South Florida nonprofit organizations, including the FKCS.
The Florida Keys Children's Shelter,
inc. is a 501(c)3 tax- exempt organization. An audited
financial statement, Continuous Quality Improvement data
and Risk Management information are available upon request.
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