Our Partners Give Back
Safety is Our Top Priority
With Capital One funding, we were able to upgrade the locks, security cameras and outdoor lights to better protect our youth. Safety is of utmost importance in providing our youth with the sense of safety they deserve.
Pathways to Financial Resiliency
Our partnership was born of a necessity to formalize a financial literacy curriculum. Thanks to Capital One’s initial investment, we were able to formalize our Money Management life skills module, but we were able to grow the knowledge base of our youth through more in-depth financial workshops lead by the amazing Capital One Ambassadors of the Miracle Mile Cafe.
Education is Key
In 2019, we recognized the need for a more refined and focused college access planning program that is tailored to the very specific needs of our former foster care and homeless youth. We are grateful to Capital One for granting us funds to take our youth on our first-ever overnight College Tour.
We invited a couple of our partner programs to join us and had over 25 youth who toured 10 schools around Florida! Schools such as
Florida Atlantic University | University of Central Florida | University of North Florida | Florida State University | University of Florida | University of Tampa | Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University | University of South Florida | Florida Gulf Coast University | Flagler College
In addition to private tours that took them around the campus, our youth were able to get a better sense of student life at each school through the eyes of current students who took them to lunch. They were then walked through the application process as it pertains to former foster youth and the ways they have to navigate the process given the education vouchers for higher education that they are entitled to. Participants were able to meet with admissions coordinators who answered specific questions. Residents reported feeling a lot more comfortable in the college application process because they now knew that the schools would be mindful of their particular backgrounds.
Getting our Hands Dirty
As you can see from our photos, the effects of Hurricane Irma were certainly felt in our small community. Our property suffered a lot of fallen branches, downed trees, and parts of our fence were badly battered.
Thanks to Capital One, not only were we able to clear the major obstacles with the help of professional services, but their team of volunteers came out to lend their strength to clearing our property to make it safer for our residents.
Our girls’ residence saw a lot of downed trees and fallen debris.
This could not have been done without the support and hard work from the entire Capital One team, but especially to our all-stars (from left to right) Charles, Jessy, Vanessa, Danny, Donald, Caleb & Kathy!
Capital One is bringing their innovative new banking experience known as their Capital Once Cafes to South Florida, and they are looking to invest deeply in our community. In addition to offering their portfolio of financial services & products, the cafes will be inviting spaces where visitors can hold a meeting, grab a coffee, or simply connect with others.
We love this approach, and are so grateful they chose Casa Valentina as one of their partners in Miami to create momentum for positive change. Not only will we be working closely together on delivery of our financial literacy curriculum, but we will be creating a community garden as well!
