Family Connection Partnership News

Community Partners Build Bridges at Family Connection Conference

The 2003 Family Connection Biennial Conference brought more than 700 participants to Jekyll Island recently for three days of educational programs, special sessions, and celebrations.

The "Building Bridges" conference offered at total of 67 learning activities. The event opened with nine personal development sessions, including Effective Facilitation Skills and Collaborative Orientation. Five interactive share fairs covered topics from local governance to work-based learning.

The Tift County High School Show Choir performs a song and dance during the Family Connection conference.

In the exhibition hall, participants visited more than 50 exhibits displaying products, services, and information relating to children and families. The Family Connection Store sold items with the Family Connection logo.

The opening plenary session included comments from Family Connection Partnership's Executive Director Gaye Smith, Board Chair Albert Wright, Public Affairs and Policy Director Taifa Butler, and Leadership Council Chair Judy Ivey, who also serves as collaborative coordinator of the Baldwin County Family Connection.

The Tift County High School Show Choir, also known as The Eighth Street Singing Company, performed several songs and dance.

Judge Glenda Hatchett of the nationally syndicated television court show, "Judge Hatchett," was the keynote speaker. Hatchett, who serves as a board member for Family Connection Partnership and is a native of Georgia, spoke of Family Connection's work in communities and the collective responsibility to ensure programs and agencies continue to improve results for children and families in Georgia.

The second day of the conference opened with a session featuring presentations on "The Changing Face of Georgia" by Stephanie Bohon of the University of Georgia and "Persistent Poverty" by Joe Whorton, executive director of the Georgia Rural Development Council. Following the presentations, a panel of Georgia state commissioners in the child welfare arena answered questions from the audience.

The day continued with more than 35 workshops and roundtables covering nine subject tracks, including early childhood learning, community economic development, empowering communities through prevention, community strategic planning, youth development, family support, research and innovations, and diversity. The learning continued the next day with two workshop sessions and a repeated share fair.

Georgia First Lady Mary Perdue was the keynote speaker during the awards luncheon. Mrs. Perdue spoke about her recently launched Our Children Campaign, challenging the audience to join in collaboration to increase the level of volunteerism on behalf of Georgia's children in foster care and state custody. She also thanked Family Connection for its support in launching the campaign in August and thanked the award winners for their contributions in improving results for children and families.

The conference was made possible through the support of sponsors, exhibitors, Family Connection collaboratives and staff. Sponsors included United Parcel Service, The Coca-Cola Company, Smart Start Georgia, and Flowers Bakery, with patron sponsors Albert Wright and Kuanita Murphy. Collaboratives contributed 112 gift baskets as door prizes and gifts for attendees and speakers.