"Because of Whole Child Connection, I learned that Tykes and Teens counseling services were available at my child's school. Whole Child Connection enabled me to take action and positively affect my child's future by showing me how easy it is to access the services my children need."
"When I was unable to secure the funding I needed to purchase a home, Whole Child Connection connected me to credit counseling services. Now, I have been approved for a home loan, my credit score has improved, and I continue to successfully manage my income more easily than ever before!"
"When my son was diagnosed with Autism, I didn't know where to turn. After completing the Whole Child Connection Profile, I discovered the Center for Autism and Related Disabilities at FAU. I am so grateful for the support I've found thanks to Whole Child Connection!"
“When I moved to Martin County, I had no idea where to find speech therapy for my son. The Whole Child Profile connected me with Easter Seals, and I am so impressed with how easy it was to find the help I needed through Whole Child Connection!
“I was living at Safe Space after escaping an abusive relationship. I completed a Whole Child Profile and was connected to a wealth of resources that helped me pick up the pieces and give myself and my children a fresh start."
Mute, disabled mom gets connected with help
My client is mute and cannot use her right hand to write due to a car accident which makes communication very difficult. She came to me for the first time because she had not received her food stamps yet for the month and she and her children were in dire need of help. She also wanted to apply for Medicaid. Using a combination of charades, barely decipherable handwriting, hand gestures, and facial expressions, I determined what she needed. First I contacted our DCF (Dept. of Children & Families) liaison to find out why my client had not received her food stamps. I was informed that her case was closed due to non-cooperation with child support. I then contacted our liaison at Child Support Enforcement liaison who said that my client’s case was open. Obviously there had been some miscommunication between DCF and CSE. After straightening out this confusion, my client received her needed food stamps. I then helped her apply for Medicaid for herself and her children. Since she can’t speak, I spoke for her during the telephone interview with DCF. I also contacted a company that provides free services and equipment to people who cannot use the telephone due to muteness and helped her apply for those services. Overall, my client was very satisfied with our services and will continue to stay in contact should she need anything else.
Janet S.
Whole Child Advisor
Abused, frightened mom finds shelter
My client completed the online Whole Child Connection (WCC) Profile in August 2007. Her Profile reported several needs including healthcare services, concerns with her son’s development, and concerns with alcohol and safety. She also applied for Medicaid. One year later, she came back to re-certify for Medicaid and apply for food stamps. She had left her husband due to his abusive behavior when under the influence of alcohol She had been in the emergency room twice this year due to his abuse but never called the police because she was afraid they would take her son away.
My client was told that in order to apply for food stamps she would need to file for child support because she was still married. She decided not to apply for food stamps. Her reason was that her husband sends money to her other children living in Guatemala.
Furthermore, her name on her son’s birth certificate was spelled incorrectly and her ID shows her name spelled differently. This could cause a problem for DCF to process her application so he was referred to a Whole Child Advisor to help her with this issue.
A couple of weeks later, she came back with a letter she had received from the Social Security Administration related to her petition to change her name on her son’s birth certificate. She needed help to read and understand the letter. At this appointment she expressed her decision to apply for food stamps and submit the required paperwork to the Child Support Enforcement office. Her body was shaking and she started to cry. She indicated that her husband had found where she was living and had threatened her life. She was afraid that if she called the police they would take her son away. The Whole Child Advisor told her she was not alone and connected her to SafeSpace - an agency that would provide them a safe place to stay, as well as food, clothing, and advice. The Advisor also connected her with the Florida Immigration Advocacy Center which helped her obtain legal counsel. My client is now getting the help she needs to have a better life for her and her son.
Maria Z.
Whole Child Advisor
Mother and daughters are reunited
Two years ago, a client walked into my office and told me that her children had been taken away from her and she needed to do something about it. She went on to tell me that her husband had had an affair with her sister and she was so devastated that she found refuge in drugs and alcohol. For days she was so drunk that she did not remember feeding her two daughters or sending them to school. Child Protection Services took the girls and placed them with their grandparents. That is when mom decided to do something about her situation. She joined AA and was assigned a DCF case worker who gave her some goals she had to accomplish in order to get her children back. I helped her complete the online Whole Child profile and we put together a Whole Child Plan which addressed all the needs that she had in order to meet her DCF goals.
Her personalized Whole Child Plan connected her with the Early Learning Coalition, Salvation Army, Medicaid, 4 C’s, information on housing, after school care, Kid Care, and the YMCA. Using her personalized Whole Child Plan, she found affordable housing, established medical insurance for her daughters, secured financial help to pay for day care and summer camps, got clothes and beds for her children, and put together a home for her family.
It was awesome when I bumped into her and she told me that her kids were back with her and it was all because she was able to meet the goals in record time. She also said that without her Whole Child plan, she would not have known where to go or how to get help. The plan showed her where to start. Later on, the grandmother died and mom updated her plan and looked for counseling for the youngest child, and was able to get in touch with Tykes and Teens. This is a great success story, it is awesome to see the kids with big smiles – by the way the two older girls are honor students at their schools and mom has been sober for more than two years.
Alicia H.
Senior Whole Child Advisor
