The Junior League of Boca Raton Receives the 2011 Community Impact Award from AJLI, Inc.

Going beyond the development of housing for farmworkers and their families to create initiatives designed to improve their quality of life
By: Sara Ritzler
 
July 14, 2011 - PRLog -- The Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc. today announced that the Junior League of Boca Raton has received the 2011 Junior League Community Impact Award for its innovative program to provide low-income farmworkers with affordable but appropriate housing while working to improve their quality of life.

The award was made at AJLI’s 89th annual convention in Philadelphia on May 14 as delegates from 292 individual Junior Leagues from the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the UK came together to celebrate the organization’s diversity, renewal and community impact.  

“The JL Community Impact Award recognizes Junior Leagues that have initiated programs that have left a lasting and meaningful impact on their communities,” said Delly Beekman, AJLI President. “With this long-running initiative, the Junior League of Boca Raton has redefined what community impact means and, in the process, addressed the needs of one of our country’s most underserved communities – low-income farmworkers who harvest the food we eat.”

For nearly two decades, the Junior League of Boca Raton has collaborated with an organization known as In the Pines, Inc. (ITP) to improve the lives of low-income farmworkers. To expand the potential of the program, however, the League also was instrumental in evolving the In the Pines mission from a definitive focus on housing to a wide-ranging set of initiatives designed to improve the overall quality of life for these families.

Working in concert with its community partners, the Farmworker Children’s Council and St. Jude Church, the League developed a rich variety of services critical to keeping the families who reside at In the Pines intact – computer-skills workshops, homework tutoring, bi-lingual literacy instruction, vocational training, recreational and educational activities, to name a few.

At the same time, the League pioneered a program to replace 20 of ITP’s outdated residences with dwellings that are LEED Platinum-certified, the highest standard of LEED-certification.
To keep the rent affordable, the League took a cost-efficient approach to environmentally friendly construction, uncovering an important source of funding:  grant monies from the Federal Emergency Management fund. As a result, it was able to finance 75 percent of the construction of the new homes, which feature low-flow showers and sinks, energy-efficient windows, hurricane-proof glass, and “green” appliances. The League even developed bi-lingual videos and a tenant’s notebook to smooth the families’ transition into their new homes and educate them on how to maintain and optimize their energy-saving features.

“What the Junior League of Boca Raton has done in its commitment of volunteer time, energy and resources over nearly two decades once again demonstrates the power of the vision and legacy of our founder, Mary Harriman,” said Ms. Beekman. “Just as Mary and her friends went into the settlement houses of New York City 110 years ago to improve the lives of impoverished immigrants, the Junior League of Boca Raton today is addressing the needs of farmworkers and their families.  It’s easy to ignore these members of our community.  JLBR decided not to.”

“The award comes with a $10,000 grant from AJLI and this will help In the Pines move forward with their construction of an additional 12 units. So we’re not only proud of winning the award but thrilled we can continue to make an impact with such a wonderful organization”, said Nancy Dockerty, President of Junior League of Boca Raton.

About The Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc.

Founded in 1901 by New Yorker and social activism pioneer, Mary Harriman, the Junior Leagues are charitable nonprofit organizations of women, developed as civic leaders, creating demonstrable community impact.

Today, The Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc. (AJLI) is comprised of more than 155,000 women in 292 Junior Leagues throughout Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom and the United States.  Together, they constitute one of the largest, most effective volunteer organizations in the world.  

About the Junior League of Boca Raton

This year, the Junior League of Boca Raton is celebrating 40 years of service to our community.  Throughout the year, JLBR members will contribute more than 35,000 volunteer hours and donate more than $250,000 to support our mission of training volunteers, developing the potential of women and improving the South Florida community.  For more information on joining this year's 2011-2012 JLBR provisional class or to learn more about the JLBR, please contact the JLBR office at 561-620-2553 or visit www.JLBR.org.  Connect with us on facebook.com/JuniorLeagueBocaRaton, twitter.com/JLBocaRaton

The Junior League of Boca Raton (JLBR) is an organization of women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving our community through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers.  Its purpose is exclusively educational and charitable. Since 1971, the JLBR has been an integral part of our community. The Junior League of Boca Raton is part of the Association of Junior Leagues International, which is comprised of 292 Junior Leagues across the United States and in four countries.
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Source:Sara Ritzler
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Tags:Junior League, Boca Raton, Community
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Location:Boca Raton - Florida - United States
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