Rising Up and Moving On 2025

On Thursday, April 10th we hosted our Rising Up and Moving On breakfast which is an opportunity for us to recognize and celebrate the successes and accomplishments of our youth, families, and community partners.

Our theme this year was "Partnerships," highlighting the idea that without our valuable partners, our families would not have the tools to succeed. Bryan Lefelhoc of Bryan Media Strategies expanded on this theme, sharing what he calls a "360 degree 24/7 partnership." He noted that each person brings a unique perspective to a collaboration, and the best partnerships happen when different abilities and perspectives work together.

We spent the remainder of the program presenting awards to our kids, families, and community partners.

• The Youth Award was presented to Justin, who is in a kinship home with the goal of adoption.
• The Helping Hands Award was presented to the Medina Hospital Cleveland Clinic ICU team who volunteers to wrap gifts at the holidays.
• The Community Partners Award was presented to the Heartland Community Church Friends for Foster Families team who has hosted events and provided volunteers for our events.
• The Law Enforcement Partnership Award was given to Detective Sarah Murhaut of the Brunswick Police Department.
• The START Family Award was given to two families; Matthew and Nicole & James
• The Kinship Family Award was given to Eugene, Maria, Dominic, and Ava. Eugene & Maria formally adopted Ava on February 28th.

We are grateful to everyone who attended this uplifting event and joined with us to celebrate these successes. We also want to thank all our community partners, not just the ones who received an award, for working with us to help write these success stories with our families.