Governor Charlie Crist, Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp and the Governor’s Chief Child Advocate Jim Kallinger have led “The Explore Adoption” public awareness campaign accentuating the importance of finding “forever families” for foster children. The intent is to reduce the children in foster care so that fewer children have to spend a great length of time enduring the emotional trauma and instability related to that lifestyle.

Leading the nation in the development of The Heart Galleries, Florida has had unprecedented success in finding loving homes for children in foster care. The Heart Galleries portray adoptive children in a way that descriptions never could through photographs of the children. Volunteer professional photographers take portraits of the children for recruitment purposes in aiding the Heart Galleries to provide public awareness of the need in finding adoptive families and permanent, loving homes for individual children.

Teenagers are one of the most difficult groups to find adoptive homes for. In an effort to encourage the adoption of teenagers, The Florida Department of Children and Families created the “Longest Waiting Teens” initiative. This project helps organizations direct their attention to finding adoptive homes for youth who have been in foster care the longest. Many of the teens have currently been in foster care for more than five years. The Florida Department of Children and Families has received federal funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as an adoption incentive reward.

As a result of these programs in Florida, ten thousand few children are in foster care today than there were three years ago. By outpacing any other state, Florida has received nearly $10 million in bonus funds from the federal government for this worthy cause.

Visit Florida Department of Children & Families here

Visit The Heart Gallery here

Visit Explore Adoption here

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The largest 15K race in the United States, the 33rd Annual Gate River Run 2010 is scheduled for Saturday,
March 13th.  Voted one of the top US Road Races for the last 20 years by Runner’s World Magazine there are three featured events.  The main event, the 15K had over 14,000 participants last year who were either running or walking.  The other two events are the Florida Times-Union 5K for Charity and the Adidas Junior River Run.

Beginning at Jacksonville’s Municipal Stadium, the 15K race runs through downtown Jacksonville, crosses the St. Johns River and then through historic San Marco.  It continues down Atlantic Boulevard and crosses over the river for the second time finishing on Duval Street back at the stadium.

The Florida Times-Union 5K for Charity is a wonderful event for the whole family.  This non-competitive event is not timed and participants can run, walk, push a stroller, or even pull a wagon.  Families, friends, churches, schools, or civic group can help us raise thousands of dollars for charities!

Limited to children under 13 years of age, the Adidas Junior River Run is a free one mile fun run for children.

Along the route live bands will be keeping the participants pumped up and water stations will be located at every mile.  This major event in Jacksonville brings a multitude of spectators who come out to cheer and indulge in parties all along the route.

The fun and excitement doesn’t end there.  Publix will be hosting a Publix Post Race Celebration at the
Fairgrounds which will include plenty of free food and drinks, a band, beer, clowns and entertainment and more.  It’s at this celebration that there will be an awards ceremony.  All 15K finishers receive a medal and $85,000 in prize money is awarded.

The closing date for registration is Monday, March 8th at 11:59 pm so don’t miss this event.  Register here.

Gate River Run 2010 starts at 8:30 am for the 15K and 8:15 for the 5K on Saturday,  March 13th.
The start of the race is at the Jacksonville Municipal Stadium, 1400 East Duval Street, Jacksonville, FL Map

Please visit the website here for more details.

Florida KidCare enacted in 1998, is the state’s children health insurance program for uninsured children. It offers comprehensive health care benefits to low-income children from birth through 18 years of age who are not eligible for Medicaid.

While on hold Crist’s recording explains benefits of the Florida KidCare program and then continues on to give a website address for Florida KidCare and presumably the phone number.  Unbeknowst to Crist and his staff the phone number directed unsuspecting caller to an explicit sex line.

The minute officials realized the error they took the number down.  It’s not known how many actually called the phone sex line.

The ordinance would include texting, accessing Internet sites and other data which entails electronic messaging from cellular, wireless or digital devices among others. Various radios would be excluded from the ordinance as well as voice radios which are used by public service employees such as police and emergency service providers.

Although enforcement would be a difficult task. most feel that at least getting the ordinance on the books would make people think twice before texting while driving. Jacksonville lawmakers propose that the offense would be considered a misdemeanor and carry a fine or imprisonment which would increase with each subsequent offense. Texting would be considered a primary offense which would mean that an officer would not need another reason other than texting to pull someone over.

While the Florida Highway Patrol is just beginning to take note of accidents in which the contributing factor might have been distraction, the best estimate for 2008 was that 15 were killed and 1,400 injured by distracted drivers. Among the most frequent distractions affecting drivers; cell phone use and texting.

Although Florida currently has no prohibitions against cell phone use and texting, bills are being pre-filed for 2010 for the new legislative session beginning in March and is sitting at the top of Governor Crist’s wish list.

An informative site to keep up on new developments about these issues and others is Hands Free Info.  Here you can check the laws by state and be informed of the latest developments on the ban on texting while driving.

Article also posted on Examiner.com