|
| Community
Outreach |
|
Background
SunServe constantly
strives to build partnerships with other
agencies, universities, health care
providers, and social service organizations
to address the multiple needs of gay,
lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered persons
in South Florida. Affiliations with various
organizations enable SunServe to address
such community concerns as homelessness for
LGBTQ youth. SunServe
partners with governmental and grassroots
groups to better serve these and others
shunted to the social margins in South
Florida.
The goal of our outreach program is to
develop proactive initiatives that reduce
the instances of violence, abuse, neglect,
addiction, and self-destructive behaviors. We
are dedicated to providing supportive
programming that foster behavioral,
emotional, psychological, and relational
health at the root sources.
Below are examples of our current
Community Outreach Projects.
Conference
Mission
Our Annual Valuing Our Families
series of programs reaches out to the entire
community to educate, advocate for, and
empower our LGBTQ families of every size and
shape. At our Annual Awards Gala, we honor
national, State, and local individuals who
have contributed to promoting equality and
respect for our LGBTQ youth and families.
Sharon Gless, our
National Spokesperson, joins us each year to
present our National Award. Past recipients
have included Sharon herself, Rosie and Kelly
O’Donnell, Armistead Maupin, Barney Frank,
Peter Paige, and Brad Altman
and George Takei.
The two “mini conferences” held in the Fall
of each year, and the annual full conference
in the Spring are designed for all who value
the contribution of lesbians and gay men to
the American family in all its diversity.
These innovative conferences proudly raise
up our own family values for all to see,
whether it is our family of origin, our
partners and children, or the deep and
familial bonds of friendship that is often
so powerfully supportive in the gay
community. We honor those who value our
families in their many forms, who advocate
for our families and who celebrate the
values that make our families strong in the
midst of adversity of all kinds.
back to top
Our Objectives
 To honor and strengthen the many ways
we bond for support, nurturance, challenge,
and growth
To deepen awareness of the life
giving power in all our diverse ways of
being family
To enhance our relational, parenting,
mentoring and care giving skills
To gather in joyful celebration of
who we are as family
To proclaim the contributions we make
to the larger communities of which we are a
part
To recognize those who are our
friends, advocates, mentors and leaders
To provide training and education for
professionals in the community who serve the
LGBTQ community
back to top
THE ANNUAL VALUING OUR FAMILIES
AWARDS
The Valuing Our Families Awards are given
annually at the Spring Conference to honor
those who as individuals, or as a couple or
family:
1. Have served as advocates on behalf of the
gay and lesbian "family." Examples include,
but are not limited to: someone who has
witnessed to the legitimacy and value of gay
relationships, or who has advocated for
partnership rights or family concerns in
schools, courts and the workplace, etc. Or
it could be someone who has served as an
advocate for the needs of young people who
are struggling with issues of coming out, or
someone who has sought to change public
policy to respect gay and lesbian youth,
families or seniors.
2. Have especially empowered the gay family:
Examples include, but are not limited to:
someone who has provided ongoing support and
encouragement to gay and lesbian families,
or who has done direct service work to
assist gay and lesbian families who are at
risk, or someone who has changed practices
in social service delivery to recognize gay
and lesbian relationships, or who has taken
on special family responsibilities such as
adopting children others would have
otherwise been overlooked.
3. Have publicly celebrated the new
realities of gay and lesbian family life:
Examples include, but are not limited to:
someone who has presented a positive or
healing image of our relationships through
the media, or by publicly acknowledging the
gifts that gay and lesbian families have
given the community at large, or by
providing leadership in our community to
raise our own awareness of how we contribute
to the communities where we live, or
families who publicly honor and affirm their
gay children.
See
Awards Archive from past Valuing
Our Families Conferences.
Stay tuned to our
News
page for information on the next Valuing Our
Families Conference!
back to top
EAGLE (End
Abuse for Gays and Lesbians Everywhere)
Domestic Violence Project
SunServe has partnered with the South
Florida Gay and Lesbian Community Center
(GLCC Pride Center) and Women in Distress,
Broward County’s leading social service
agency for domestic violence concerns, to
raise awareness about domestic violence in
same sex relationships. The joint venture
provides education, support, counseling, and
assistance to gay men and lesbians who are
victims of domestic violence. A full range
of services is available for the LGBTQ
community so that no one need suffer
domestic violence afraid, unprotected, or
alone. For more information on SunServe's
Intimate Partner Abuse support group,
click
here.
For more information on Community
Outreach Projects, contact:
Jim Lopresti, PhD, LMHC
Director of Clinical Education,
Senior Clinical Supervisor
954.957.5616
jlopresti@sunserve.org
|
|
Sunshine Social Services Sunshine Social Services
Sunshine Social Services Sunshine Social Services
Sunshine Social Services
|
 |
