AACY is Hopelessly Devoted to Youth

BOCA RATON, Fla. - March 4, 2016 - PRLog -- Honorary Chairpersons Yaacov and Sue Heller of Boca Raton ignited the evening with clothing reminiscent of the era as did Co-Chairs Ronnie and Debralyn Belletieri, also of Boca Raton. Antique corvettes framed the entrance to the American Association of Caregiving Youth’s (AACY) sixth annual Hearts and “Soles” benefit dinner and auction held on Saturday February 27, 2016 at Broken Sound Club. Premier sponsors included Polen Capital and Sam’s Club.

According to Joe Kraus, Chair of the Board of the AACY, “the AACY team did a great job creating a fun event to raise much needed funds to help some very special kids who are filling big shoes.  AACY, through its Caregiving Youth Project, provides assistance, support, respite and education to over 550 students and their family members in Palm Beach County.  AACY also provides information and resources to thousands of others throughout the calendar year.  We are seeing an escalating number of requests for assistance directly from kids in elementary, middle and high schools. So, it is very important that we find new ways to grow AACY’s resources.  We thank all those who were a part of this great event and all those who donated to help keep kids on the right path and in school.”

Dr. Ann Faraone-Brocco was honored at the event.  A former principal and Director of Student Intervention Services of The School District of Palm Beach County, she was recognized for her dedication to caregiving youth and helping to attain the support they need. Frank A. Barbieri, Jr., Esq., Vice Chair of The School Board sent this message:

“On behalf of the School Board of Palm Beach County, but more importantly, on behalf of the many thousands of children whose lives you have so positively affected, I thank you. As Winston Churchill once said ‘We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.’ Long after all of us are gone, the world will be a better place because of the love and support you have graciously given to our children. “

The first Caregiving Youth Project in the US began at Boca Raton Community Middle School in Barbieri’s 5^th District. He has seen the needs and progress of the students since 2006. More than 1,000 students have been served from sixth grade through high school graduation; participants’ graduation rate exceeds 95%, twenty per cent greater than the School District.

About AACY:

The American Association of Caregiving Youth (AACY) is a Florida based 501 (c) (3) non-profit corporations that began serving the greater Boca Raton community in 1998. AACY is the only organization of its kind in the United States for caregiving youth, a vulnerable and hidden population conservatively estimated to exceed 1.4 million kids ages 8-18 years. The ultimate goal of AACY is for no child in the US to have to drop out of school because of family caregiving responsibilities.