Monthly Conference Call

Please join us for our monthly conference call on Monday, October 3, 2011 at 8:30 p.m. Be prepared to have a real talk about how fostering affects marriages and relationships.

 

Here's how to access the conference call:  

Dial 1.888.808.6959

Punch in the PIN 9229094# when prompted. 

 

You're in!

FSFAPA Election

Ballots for the October election were mailed August 15, 2011 to all registered voters of FSFAPA. Please return your ballots by mail by October 1 or you may bring it to the quarterly meeting October 15 in Navarre. New officers will be announced over the weekend of the quarterly meeting.

Quarterly Meeting (4th Q)

FSFAPA's last Quarterly Meeting of the year will be held Saturday, October 15, 2011 in Navarre, FL. All foster and adoptive parents, as well as supporters, are encouraged to attend. Our topic for this quarterly meeting will be advocacy and how we can better advocate for our parents throughout 2012.

 

Meeting Location:

Navarre Conference Center

8700 Navarre Parkway

Navarre, FL 32566

 

Meeting Schedule (Oct. 15):

10 a.m. -- noon: President's Council Meeting

10 a.m. -- noon: F.A.S.T. Training

Noon -- 1:30 p.m.: Lunch on your own

1:30 -- 3:30 p.m.: General Membership Meeting

5 p.m.: Nominations Committee Meeting

7 -- 9 p.m.: Board Meeting

 

Hotel Information (for those staying overnight):

Hampton Inn & Suites Navarre

7710 Navarre Parkway

Navarre, FL 32566 

850.939.4848

 

Room rates are $79 per night for standard rooms and $99 per night for suites. These rates are available until September 23, 2011. Register through this link.

 

Several nearby dining establishments will be offering 10 percent off the price of your meal by showing your room key. 

 

The information sheet is now available at www.floridafapa.org. Click on the text that says "Quarterly Meeting" and you will have a pdf of the hotel information, dining options and proposed meeting schedule.

 

If you need childcare, contact info@floridafapa.org for a childcare form.

 

Questions/comments? Contact info@floridafapa.org. 

FSFAPA Meetings

 

 

 

The meeting at the Pathway to Independence Summit was well attended and we welcome those who are receiving the newsletter for the first time. 

 

Below is the letter sent to Summit participants:

 

Hello parents and supporters,
We at Florida State Foster/Adoptive Parent Association hope you had a wonderful time at the 2011 Pathway to Independence Summit last week. 

For those of you who attended our informational meeting last Thursday, thank you! We were very pleased with the turnout and the special guest appearance by Tanya Wilkins, wife of DCF Secretary David Wilkins. We hope to see many of you throughout the remainder of the year at our other meetings and events. 

Three quick points:

1. Foster Parent Forum: You spoke, we listened. We are now looking to partner with one of two organizations that might be able to help us with a foster parent forum just for FSFAPA members. It may take some time to get it going but we wanted to let you know that we're working on it.

2. FSFAPA Redesign: The Florida Coalition for Children (FCC)'s staff is working with FSFAPA on a redesign of the association. We want to improve our infrastructure so we can better serve you in your role as a foster and/or adoptive parent. So we ask for your patience and understanding as we go through this change for the better. Some of our ideas might work and some might not but as always, we hope that you will provide us with input.

3. Volunteers: We need your help. Really, we need your help. I talked with some of you about specific things but we really want to change how we operate and have more "committee" work and not just "one-person" work. There are four committees that we sorely need volunteers for: newsletter, membership, website and fund development. If you have any experience working with these areas, please email us at info@floridafapa.org. There are other committees listed on our website at www.floridafapa.org/committees.html; we'd love to have you for any of them.   

 

Visit the FSFAPA Facebook page to view more photos and please join us for the next informational meeting:

 

Monday, November 14 at 7 p.m. 

Florida Coalition for Children Conference 

Hyatt Regency Tampa

Two Tampa City Center

Tampa, FL 33602

 

Look forward to seeing you there!

Congratulations Maria

Bilateral Agreement or Partnership Plan?

Have you signed a bilateral service agreement lately? Or has your CBC or provider already updated to the Partnership Plan? 

Please be aware that the Partnership Plan should now be used instead of the bilateral service agreement. Memos were sent to CBCs in December 2010 and June 2011 alerting them of the change. If you're not sure what the Partnership Plan looks like, view it here.

Membership Dues

FSFAPA is looking into adding membership dues so we can better serve our parents. Would you pay annual dues (per family) to be a member of FSFAPA? Send your Yes or No vote to info@floridafapa.org.

 

You may also vote on the FSFAPA Facebook page.

2012 FSFAPA Conference 

Join us at the beach as FSFAPA celebrates 25 years of existence! FSFAPA's 16th Annual Education Conference will be held June 22-24, 2012 at the Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort in Daytona Beach. 

 

FSFAPA is currently looking for parents who would like to serve on the child care committee for the conference. We need foster and adoptive parents that are interested in providing care for 0-4 and 5-12 age groups, as well as special needs care. Please contact Trudy Petkovich at petkovij@me.com if you'd like to serve on the child care committee.

Condolences

FSFAPA board member Dee Wilson (Northeast RVP) lost her son Michael Colin Wilson in August. We ask that you continue to keep Dee in your thoughts as she and her family heal.