Dear Friend:

Welcome on our Crowdrise page. If you are here, you know we are raising funds for Foreverfamily's 25th Anniversary in honor of our engagement. 

Why are we doing this?

I (J) have been involved with Foreverfamily since 2000. Foreverfamily is a grassroots non-profit agency that focuses its efforts on children with an incarcerated parent or parents and supports them as they, their parents, caregivers and extended families work to remain a family.

At Foreverfamily (in those days known as AIM, Inc.) I have been a volunteer, a computer instructor, a cook, a driver, an assistant, a prison chaperone, a fundraiser, a grant writer, a trouble shooter, a camp counselor, a mentor, a friend, a student, a dreamer, an outsider, an insider, a shoulder to lean on...  The list can go on and on. 

My time at Foreverfamily has made me who I am today. I learned about working with children, about getting the job done, about family who are not blood relatives, about managing myself and others. I learned about inequality, racism and classism. I also learned about hope, dreams and affirmations. I learned children need stability and people who just show up and believe in them. I also learned that if I wanted to run a program for “my” kids, I needed to raise the funds first! 

Last year I brought Roberto to Atlanta for the annual Foreverfamily Gala. He was impressed and touched and immediately became part of the family knows as Foreverfamily. It was not hard to convince him to support this amazing organization.

So why are WE doing this?

This year Foreverfamily celebrates its 25th anniversary. Since 1987, Foreverfamily has been working directly with children and families of imprisoned parents, and during this time has developed an impressive track record. Nearly 97% of Foreverfamily graduates say they have fulfilling and productive lives—which stands in stark comparison to the experience of most children of incarcerated parents, who are seven times more likely than other children to end up in prison themselves.

So this is why we are doing this!

Foreverfamily will always be close to our hearts and I continue to serve on the Advisory Board and act as Web Master. There are 1.7 million children in this country who need the support Foreverfamily provides to break the cycle of incarceration. Every time I reconnect with one of my kids, who tells me she started college or he got a job, my heart sings. It also proves that the model works and our children benefit from it.

I hope you will help us celebrate our engagement by making a generous donation to a cause we fully belief in and know through and through. If you’d like more information you can find it on the website (www.foreverfam.org), or just give us a call.