The Family Cafe Needs Your Help!!!

Dear Friends,

We need your help! The Family Café recently learned that all funding for The 11th Annual Family Café Conference in 2009 has been cut from the House budget. That means that State of Florida funding for next year’s Annual Conference has been completely CUT!

It goes without saying that this is completely unacceptable for the thousands of families that look to The Family Café for training, information and support. The Annual Conference has benefited tens of thousands of Floridians over the last ten years, and people with disabilities in communities throughout the state look forward to the opportunity to gather, share their experiences, and learn about available services, and develop resources that the Annual Conference provides.

The Family Café Annual Conference is a worthwhile use of state money, please contact your state legislator today and let them know how important the Annual Conference is to you and your community.

People with disabilities and their families have a powerful voice when we speak in unison. If we come together to raise that voice in the name of making sure The Family Café Annual Conference continues to provide all of the education, information and community that it has in past, we can certainly convince the State of Florida to provide the resources we need to serve families like yours.

Here are some facts to keep in mind when you speak with your Legislators:
The Family Café Annual Conference serves 10,000 individuals with disabilities and their family members from all regions of Florida each year.

The Family Café has served more than 85,000 Floridians over its ten year history.
The Annual Conference provides critical information and resources to Floridians on waiting lists, which comprise approximately 20% of all conference attendees.
The Annual Conference is a great value for Florida, with a cost of only $2.23 for each hour of training for each individual at the event.

To find your State Senator online, visit www.flsenate.gov and enter your zip code.
To find your State Representative, visit http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/myrepresentative.aspx and enter your zip code.

Please take a moment to call, write or e-mail your Senators and Representatives. Remember to tell them how essential it is for the Legislature to fund The Family Café Annual Conference. Let them know how important it is to you personally and how it has positively affected your life. They need to hear about the impact the Annual Conference has had on your family’s life!
It would also be helpful for you to contact one of our greatest supporters in the Florida House of Representatives, Rep. Bill Galvano, whether or not you live in his area. Please make a point to thank him for his work on our behalf, and express the need for his continued leadership. His Tallahassee office can be reached at 850-488-4086, his Bradenton office is at 941-708-4968.
Thank you very much for all of your efforts on our behalf. We here at The Family Café consider all of the people that come to our event to be part of our extended family, and we hope you feel the same way. We want to keep bringing information, resources and togetherness that has made our past Annual Conferences so worthwhile. Anything you can do to make that possible would be welcomed.

Thank you, The Family Café