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Qrganization: Exchange Club CASTLE Program: Valued Visits Funder: Children's Services Advisory Committee - RFP42006061 PROPOSAL NARRATIVE A. ORGANIZATION CAPABILITY (Entire Section A not to exceed one page) 1 . Provide the mission statement and vision of your organization. The mission of the Exchange Club CASTLE is to improve the quality of family life while preventing child abuse and neglect, by providing community education, support and resources for families in need of assistance . The CASTLE envisions a community where each child is allowed to grow to his or her full potential, free from abuse and neglect, and families have access to the supports they need to create healthy living and learning environments for children. 2. Provide a brief summary of your organization including areas of expertise, accomplishments and population served. This year, the CASTLE is celebrating its 25th year of providing child abuse prevention services to families on the Treasure Coast, and Okeechobee. Starting in 1981 with one program and a staff of three, the CASTLE has grown, and now offers an array of prevention services which have been added as the needs of the community change and develop. The CASTLE ' s core program, Safe Families, remains an industry leader, and has set the benchmark for quality in-home services that produce results and keeps families together. More than 100 child abuse centers in 27 states utilize the Safe Families model that was implemented in Fort Pierce in 1981 , by those three CASTLE employees . CASTLE services are accredited by the national Council on Accreditation, and this year, the CASTLE will also be seeking accreditation from the National Exchange Club Foundation. All CASTLE services utilize a continuous quality improvement (CQI) model to monitor and improve the delivery of services . This model includes peer reviews, client satisfaction surveys, measurements of program effectiveness, and the use of this information to make improvements . CASTLE services are designed to prevent child abuse and build the capacity of families, through parenting education and family skills building. Our core program Safe Families, offers long term, home based, parenting education. Other programs offered include : Families First, a training seminar for divorcing parents ; High Hopes for Kids, offering support to children whose parents have divorced; Positive Parenting, a support group for parents facing difficulties raising their children; Valued Visits, a supervised visitation center; and Strengthening Families, a five agency collaborative that utilizes a group setting to build family skills . The population served is : families who are at risk for abusing or neglecting their children; families who have had a reported incident of abuse or neglect, but who, with support and education, can eliminate further episodes of abuse; families with children 0- 18 ; Families are served county wide, with no geographic restrictions. This year' s demographics indicate that 65 % of enrolled families are single parents, 51 % are White, 28 % are Hispanic, 17% are Black, and 4% are Haitian. Fifty-eight percent of families served (Safe Families only) are below the federal poverty level . 4