| # | Name | Comments |
|---|
| 3651 | Dorise Stewart | I am a single adoptive parent of 3 siblings. Cutting the adoption subsidy is going to put me in jeopardy of being able to maintain the home for them and to provide for their needs. All 3 are special needs and have had many medical problems and emotional problems. We will be the next homeless family because my salary and the subsidy barely help me make ends meet. I was married when I adopted them and when we divorced I worked hard all by myself to take care of them. I really need those few dollars to help with school clothes and other needs. If you have to cut it, please don't cut it totally out, adoptive parents need the help. This is going to seriously affect others who want to adopt special needs children. I also doubt foster homes will take any children without the financial assistance. It's going to hurt the children in the end! |
| 3652 | Angela Wright | THESE KIDS ARE OUR FUTURE AMERICA MAY GOD HELP YOU SHAM ON YOU WHAT ARE YOU THINKING HOW MANY KIDS ARE GOING TO HAVE THE SUFFER ????????????????? |
| 3653 | Christina Deese | I have adopted three foster care children. As a PUBLIC SCHOOL TEACHER, without the monthly subsidy for adopting 3 special needs foster care children, we are in for a radical life change.... how will the state ever offer children the future they deserve if all funding is cut to place them in stable, loving families? Is the state prepared to cover the cost of prision for all of the children denied these families? It seems that we are a bit short sighted. |
| 3654 | Ronda Westberry | |
| 3655 | Anonymous | These children are our future. They are already behind children that live in so called normal homes. Lets not knock them down any further. The children need all the support we can give them so they have a chance to be productive citizens in our society. We don't want to increase the number of children in foster care. We need them in loving homes now, and in the future. |
| 3656 | Eileen Roy | Please do not damage our abused children in the state of Florida by cutting subsidies that will keep them from becoming adopted. Have pity on our must vulnerable citizens! |
| 3657 | Rebecca Barker | There are a multitude of other ridiculous things that should be cut BEFORE you do this. Shame on you |
| 3658 | Anonymous | Let's put out money where it really counts, towards the future or our country....in our children. There's no better investment than them. |
| 3659 | Anonymous | |
| 3660 | Danielle Kennedy | |
| 3661 | Sybil Goings | I am a former relative caregiver and now the adoptive parent of three, ages 5, 7 and 8. The relative caregiver funds are minimal as they are. I am also a single parent. At present I am working a part-time job, I don't receive and subsidy for day care or after school because that was stopped after the adoption. I have had to utilize my pension to an extent that it too is now minimal.
I became a relative caregiver because I did not want my children in foster care the remainder of their lives. I have done my research and know that because they are Black, siblings and the two are boys, that is where they would most likely end up. Governor Crist, I understand that you are a very compassionate person, so therefore I'm asking you not to sign this portion of the budget since it has also been proven that children relish better with relatives that care opposed to being placed in group homes or foster homes.
Thank you for listening to the many of us. |
| 3662 | Anonymous | My husband and I are in the process of attending MAPP classes in order to qualify to become adoptive parents of children within the foster care system. I was shocked when I heard that the state would even dare to consider cutting funds to the child welfare system. My heart aches when I hear about the different scenarios and experiences that brought these children into the system. It is highly immoral and shameful for a civilized country, the most powerful in the world in fact, to treat the most vulnerable and hurt members of our society as simply numbers on a page. If our "leaders" can not find solutions to our most pressing societal problems, and in fact endeavor to make things worse than they already are, then they have no business being in the positions of authority than they are in. This seems like an all too quick and easy political solution. We all know that children can not vote; but I sure can and will be paying extremely close attention to how this all plays out. |
| 3663 | Lori Scumaci | |
| 3664 | Anonymous | |
| 3665 | Kim Dorey | We should be incresing the buget for these children. Removing children with attachment issues from good foster homes because there is no funding is unethical. Further, we are doing a tremendouse disservice to those children who have turned 18 and have aged out of the system. They are immature mentally and emotionally and have not developed the ability to do even the simplest of daily living skills such as shopping, laundry, cooking, and taking their own medicine. We have 1 independant living employee for at 3 or more counties with a case load of 70 very high needs youth. Most of these youth end up as homeless and on our streets. We are dropping the ball on these kids. We need more funding for independant living, to prevent caseworker burnout, and to pay for good foster homes to raise these often very difficult children. |
| 3666 | Anonymous | |
| 3667 | Anonymous | |
| 3668 | Anonymous | Abused children need a chance in life. If these were your children, how would you vote? Please give this matter serious thought and vote in their favor. Thanks. |
| 3669 | D. Alfano | The budget is tight now, more cuts will drastically put childrens lives in grave danger. The system cannot keep up with caseloads now as it is, what makes anyone think that with future cutbacks and loss of funds will help the system. It will depleat the system and more children will die because of the lack of followups and proper supervision. |
| 3670 | Anonymous | |
| 3671 | Diane Janelle | |
| 3672 | Don Hayward | |
| 3673 | Lucie Ducas | |
| 3674 | Anonymous | Through no fault of their own, these innocent children have to have people who care and can help them. Please dont take away funding that can help families to adopt them!! |
| 3675 | Debra M. McPhee | The well-being of our States families and children depend on critcal resources that are being threatened. STOP THE BUDGET CUTS! We will all have to answer to the disasterous impact that these proposed cuts will have for our State. |
| 3676 | Anonymous | As a Family Services Counselor working in the Escambia County area, we have been feeling the cuts for a few years. Not only are service providers cutting back, but there's not enough foster homes available to go around. Non-relatives aren't able to get any assistance from the state (aside from Medicaid) to help with supporting children that they have bonded with via neighbor/extended family relationships. Gas prices are outrageous; wear and tear on ones' personal vehicle is sky rocketing; people are losing their homes left and right--and I'm sure their are some caseworkers caught up in this senseless situation. In addition the demands to ensure children are kept safe continues to grow. When will the madness stop? In my opinion, if you don't take care of the basic needs of the caseworkers, then you surely won't have enough (caseworkers or resources) to go around to take care of our children. With this, the outcomes outlined in this petition --death, fewer adoptions, serious injuries, higher caseloads and homelessness are for certain. |
| 3677 | Anonymous | |
| 3678 | Elise Preira | |
| 3679 | Orlene Campbell | |
| 3680 | gala munnings | |
| 3681 | Sharon Joseph | Please stop the budget cut for abused children |
| 3682 | Debra Lacey | |
| 3683 | Anonymous | don't make more cuts |
| 3684 | Natacha Raymond-Policarpe | Please consider the children, don't allow them to suffer. |
| 3685 | Arlene Munoz | |
| 3686 | Bonnita M. Krivosheyff, BA | Please stop the cuts in services to our very vulnerable, abused children. |
| 3687 | Rachel Miller | Please don't take away funds from children, we are well beneath the standards as it is. |
| 3688 | Mary | |
| 3689 | Anonymous | |
| 3690 | Naydee Martinez | |
| 3691 | Anonymous | Leaders, please get your hands out of the cookie jar and give the funds back to our state's most vulnerable citizens...because that's what I elected you and pay my taxes for you to do! thanks |
| 3692 | clicile pierre | I am a Child Advocate at one of the states CBC's. I continue to see everyday the lack of funds available to our youth either under protective supervision or who are in foster car. I fear what these budget cuts will do to our children and even our community as a whole. please consider the thousands of youth that depend of these sort of funding to live decent lives, despite the neglect and abuse they had to overcome. please dont revictimize our children. |
| 3693 | Amanda Rivera | |
| 3694 | Judith Langevin | |
| 3695 | Ms. alkawanna s. Kelley | Our Children are our Life and our Future!! They will have to take care of us one day. Will they be able to? |
| 3696 | Ms. Alkawanna S. Kelley | Our Children are our Life and our Future!! They will have to take care of us one day. Will they be able to? |
| 3697 | Willie Duncan Jr. | |
| 3698 | Barbara williams | |
| 3699 | Linda Sierra, MSW | Please reconsider the proposed budget cuts. This budget cut will affect children, the future adults of this country, the budget cuts will affect the resources presently helping children. The long range affects of the budget cut will increase crime and increase the prison population. If these programs are cut now, our country will be affected economically and academically, the children affected, are our future....the buget cuts will increase unemployment and mental health needs in the future. The problems so many children face
today will not go away by cutting programs. |
| 3700 | tammy espinosa | children are our top priority, and these are very needy . How can we cut assistance to the poorest in our nation. This will put many children in danger of dying. We have no objections to spending trillions on a hopeless war, but can't take care of our own? |