News

Congratulations to our Executive Director Rhonda Rogers who was recently nominated by Nonprofits First as Nonprofit Executive of the Year through the organization’s Hats Off Nonprofit Awards, which will be held October 1 in West Palm Beach.

Rhonda was recommended for the award by a staff member at our Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group. Rhonda is up for the award along with more than 20 other nonprofit executives across Palm Beach County.

“It’s an honor to be recognized by someone you work with,” Rhonda said. “I’m really grateful.”

Rhonda, who was hired by our organization in April, 2017, said she is most proud of her work in expanding our youth services programs, which includes a summer camp and after-school program for middle school children.

She also started an annual Literacy Luncheon focused on childhood literacy and used the event as a fundraiser for our youth services programs. In addition, she said she has worked hard to honor and support the work of her staff, as well as expand more services to Haitian families moving into our community.

The winner of the award will be announced during the awards event. See the other nominees here.

Good luck Rhonda!

Our summer youth camp made a big difference in the lives of elementary and middle school children.

How do we know? The parents and volunteers told us so, but we could also see it in the smiles of the children.

The 55 children attending our camp in June and July played games, did sports, learned about nature and animals during visits from Palm Beach Zoo, went to the library, and spent time brushing up on their reading skills.

But the summer’s biggest thrill was a trip to Walt Disney World, said Rhonda Rogers, our executive director.

“A lot of kids have never been there,” she said. “You could really see in their eyes how excited they were to go there for the first time. We had lots and lots of smiles.”

Rhonda said the goal of the camp was to give the children a place to go in the summer months where they could be entertained and enriched academically. Raising reading levels for children, she said, remains a key focus of our work at Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group.

Children and their families also benefitted from food donations which were delivered weekly by Palm Beach County Food Bank.

Our camp was made possible by our main funders Jim Moran Foundation and Impact 100 Palm Beach County, as well as our other partners which included Palm Beach Zoo, Big Brother Big Sister of Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Palm Beach County Food Bank, and Dollar General, Rhonda said.

Efforts are already underway to secure the needed funding to run our camp next summer. This year, our third annual Literacy Luncheon, scheduled for March 20, will be a fundraiser for the camp. Details on the luncheon will be coming soon.

“I think the camp was well received,” Rhonda said. “I know the kids enjoyed it, especially the trip to Disney!”

We’re starting a Robotics Club!

Our club, for ages 9-16, will focus on building robots with Lego pieces and other materials. It’ll also concentrate on developing teamwork and presentation skills for students in grades 4-8.

The new club at BRIDGES at Lake Worth West is part of First Lego League, which puts on competitions across the globe featuring robot-building events and other hands-on STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) experiences.

The club will meet every Monday after Sept. 23, from 4:30-5:30 pm, at our main building at 4730 Maine Street in Lake Worth.

We hope to see your child at our Robotics Club!

(Photo: First Lego League)

Reducing the infant mortality rate, especially among our black and Hispanic babies, is an important goal for all of us.

During the month of September, Lake Worth West Resident Planning Group marked Infant Mortality Awareness Month by educating our families on how to keep their babies safe and healthy.

It was also a time to celebrate the birth of our babies with our “Look Who’s Turning One” event on September 19. We had a cake, a clown, and many speeches celebrating our babies and their families.

“We want to celebrate our babies and everything in life that they have to look forward to,” said Rhonda Rogers, our executive director.

There’s a lot to celebrate, for sure.

Our partner, Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County, has worked hard to reduce infant deaths and racial disparities by making sure that expecting families have access to health care and supportive services through a network of providers, including: Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies, local Healthy Start Coalition, Florida Department of Health’s Palm Beach County office, the county’s Youth Services Department, March of Dimes, and Sickle Cell Foundation.

As a result, the mortality rate for black infants — 6.0 — is at a 20-year low. And our county is doing better at reducing that rate than the state, and all other urban Florida counties, according to Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County.