FII News

EVERY CHILD DESERVES A CHANCE!

On Saturday, May 12, 2007 at 1:00 pm, Project AWARE Mentoring Program(PAMP), through Families of Incarcerated Individuals, Inc. (FII), hosted its “1st Annual STEP UP 4 CHILDREN: Step Show Competition.” The competition took place on the campus of the Historic LeMoyne-Owen College in the gymnasium located at 807 Walker Avenue.

STEP UP 4 CHILDREN is a campaign to promote the importance of mentoring and community involvement to ensure that all children are given a fair chance in life. FII encourages mentoring through its Project AWARE Mentoring Program which pairs children and youth, who are affected by the incarceration of a parent or immediate family member, with trained mentors who can provide support, friendship, reinforcement, and counsel. To date, PAMP has over 100 successful matches and has serviced over 1,000 families in the Shelby County area.

Events planned for the day included music, giveaways and special guest appearances from our outstanding leaders of Shelby County. This was no ordinary step show competition!!!! Competitors were some of the “best of the best” step teams in Memphis City and Shelby County Schools such Newberry Elementary, Highland Oaks Elementary, Grahamwood Elementary, Lester Middle, Lanier Middle, Wooddale High, and Middle College High School. The participants were aware that they were stepping to make mentoring available to many children throughout Shelby County that has been affected by the incarceration of a loved one. All proceeds from this event will go toward enhancing and expanding the Project AWARE Mentoring Program. Over 300 supporters attended. LeMoyne-Owen College Community Development Corporation (LOCCDC) co-sponsored the event.

For more information on how you can make a difference in the life of a child, please call FII and its Project AWARE Mentoring Program at (901) 726-6191.

Together we can make a difference!

Note: Click on the link below to view a video clip of the step competition.

Step Competition Video Clip

MID-SOUTH’S TOP VOLUNTEER PROGRAM HONORED

(Memphis, TN April 13, 2007) -- Volunteer Memphis honored Families of Incarcerated Individuals’ Project Aware Mentoring Program as the Volunteer Program of the Year on April 13th at the 31st annual Spirit of Giving Awards. The program was recognized for its outstanding commitment to creating an environment of effective volunteer management.

The Project Aware Mentoring Program provides a variety of community-based programs and services designed to foster positive family values and reduce the stigma suffered by the forgotten victims of crime and incarceration – the families – and especially the children.

One-on-one mentoring is one of the most effective youth development strategies and rewarding opportunities to make a difference in the life of a child. Mentoring a young person with an incarcerated parent is a special challenge requiring very special volunteers.

In the Project Aware Mentoring Program, mentors are recruited, trained and supported in their work with their protégés and they are asked to commit to a minimum of one year, spending at least two hours each week with their mentees. They also participate in social and cultural enrichment activities for two hours a month. Twice a year they take part in community service projects, helping their youth to learn the value of giving back.

This agency has also been granted accreditation by the Memphis Mentoring Partnership for designing and maintaining an effective and high-quality program.