Okaloosa County BOCC — August 4, 2015 — annualreport2013(1) — reading text

2013 Annual Report Hope. Justice. For All. - from Joan Anderson, LSNF President Cornelia was a victim of domestic violence that I can’t get out of my mind. I think how strong Cornelia is and how LSNF was her advocate and champion. I also think about how many can- not get help from LSNF because there is not enough funding to help everyone. I think about how difficult it is for LSNF staff to have to say no but how life changing it is when we can say yes. Thanks to our funders and donors, hundreds turn to Legal Services every year to get the expert legal assistance they need to escape a violent home. Thousands more turn to LSNF to save their homes, access public benefits and right the wrongs. We commend those who help the “Cornelias” every day, the amazing volunteers, supporters and staff who do so very much to bring justice to all. Our own Kris Knab was honored with the Richard W. Ervin Equal Justice Award for her work in paving the way for justice for poverty level citizens in north Florida. Quick reference LSNF worked hard this year to raise much needed funds. Double the locations and double the music were hits at Jazz for Justice and we awarded the Champion of Legal Services Award Our Mission .................................2 to Randall “Big Daddy” Webster for faithfully performing for all seventeen years. The rest of Case Statistics ..............................4 the year found us busy with grants and presentations to funders along with a ‘Dog Dayz of Summer’ Jewelry Show benefitting LSNF’s domestic violence programs. The annual Founders Client Stories ...............................5 of Justice Event at Don Hinkle’s home welcomed new members. Gilmore Services pulled in two trucks to the Tallahassee Office on a clear fall day to allow supporters to shred their Private Attorney Involvement ..7 papers at lunch. All the while we shared LSNF activities through new and enhanced Facebook LSNF Funding...............................8 and website posts. Finally, as 2013 ended we were excited to move into our new Pensacola office. All of our efforts together have made 2013 a year to be proud of. For more information on Cornelia and other clients go to www.bit.ly/CorneliaStory. As Cornelia’s story still echoes in our hearts, I want to take this opportunity to thank the board who has worked to create new partnerships, strengthen collaborations and guide LSNF through its many challenges. I also commend the LSNF staff who continue to amaze us all with their enthusiasm, expertise and commitment to hope and justice for all. Tallahassee Quincy Panama City Ft. Walton Pensacola Office Office Office Beach Office Office Counties Served Franklin Calhoun Bay Okaloosa Escambia Jefferson Gadsden Gulf Walton Santa Rosa Leon Jackson Holmes Wakulla Liberty Washington  Our Mission Legal Services of North Florida is a non-profit, 501 (c) (3) agency providing civil legal assistance. Our core mission is: To provide An Opportunity for Justice for eligible residents through representation conducted efficiently and comparable in quality to that of the private bar, and through other forms of legal assistance designed to provide a full range of civil legal services to those in need. LSNF provides free civil legal services to persons whose income falls below 125% of the federal poverty level, and to specified vulnerable populations who experience problems, in the following priority areas:  Preservation of the home and promotion of home ownership;  Support for families and children;  Promotion of employment, economic security and health; and,  Promotion of safety and stability. Joan Anderson, Esq. - President LSNF Leadership Legal Services of North Florida, Inc. is guided by a 21 member Board of Directors. Seven board members represent low-income client groups or are low-income clients them- selves. The other members are vol- unteer attorneys recommended by local bar associations and the Dean of the FSU law school. 2013 LSNF Board of Directors OFFICERS Joan Anderson, Esq. - President Joanne Battle - Vice-President M. Catherine Lannon, Esq. Secretary/Treasurer Our Accomplishments BOARD MEMBERS Mark A. Bednar, Esq. During 2013 LSNF substantially expanded services available to its clients by: Pamela Cayson  An expansion of funds and services for veterans in our service area. We were Tonya Chavis, Esq. Carolyn Cummings, Esq. included as a sub-grantee for funding from the Supportive Services for Veteran Martin R. Dix, Esq. Families program. We are working with many organizations in the community to Sally Gertz, Esq. improve lives of veterans who are homeless or facing homelessness in the eastern Renee Gordon, Esq. part of our service area; Barry Gray  Moving our Pensacola branch office. After several years of being housed in an Michael Guttmann, Esq. Oliver Hill, Sr. office that was too small to meet our needs in Pensacola, we found a space that Fatimah Jackson was suitable for our needs and within our budgetary constraints allowing us to use Wendy Loquasto, Esq. more volunteers; Theodore Mack, Esq.  Enhancement of our program wide website. We completed the transition to a Joel Margules, Esq. West Ritchie, Esq. new program website and added a component offering online pro bono referrals Derek Sims for attorneys willing to undertake representation of clients whose cases we have Phil Smith, Esq. screened; and, Yvonne Whitehead  Sharing of documents throughout the program. We created SharePoint document libraries for staff in our five offices. All documents from our five fileservers have been centralized and transferred to our SharePoint site enabling staff to access program documents and other digitized forms and manuals from anywhere there is internet access. 2  Our Executive Director - Kris Knab As LSNF begins its 38th year we look back with amazement and pride at all the growth and chal- Community Leaders LSNF Board President lenges our agency has endured. In 2013 LSNF served over 7,000 families, from five offices, in sixteen north Florida counties. Our staff of 18 In celebration of 30 years of attorneys had extremely high caseloads but service to the community LSNF changed lives and gave hope to domestic violence established the 30th Anniver- victims, children, the elderly, those in danger of sary Council, the members of losing their homes and the poor. which were asked to partici- pate because of their long- The Legal Services Corporation came to assess standing support of LSNF and our work and reported that we are doing a good their commitment to raising $2 job of understanding the needs, targeting re- million dollars for LSNF’s en- sources and employing a staff of people who are dowment fund. Each year we experienced and passionate about their service to recognize their efforts and thank them for their continued clients. They specifically mentioned our work support and commitment. with veterans and sexual and domestic violence victims and were impressed with our many collaborative efforts with community based organizations that enhance services to clients. 30th Anniversary Council They complimented the quality of work produced by this program and noted our many training opportunities and support for staff and volunteers. They commended our Direc- CHAIRMEN tor of Litigation, Scott Manion, and were impressed with Javan Ferguson’s work on imple- Benjamin Crump menting SharePoint. Additionally, they liked our systems for case management, our volun- Talbot ‘Sandy’ D’Alemberte teer opportunities, extensive community outreach and a board who was supportive and responsive. Legal Services Corporation is our largest funder, and is a strong partner in COMMITTEE MEMBERS shaping our policies and best practices as a legal services program. We were very pleased Nina Ashenafi with their findings. C. DuBose ‘Duby’ Ausley Mark Bednar 2013 also brought other new funding partners. The Governor signed the foreclosure bill Alan Bookman and the Attorney General’s office facilitated a contract with LSNF to provide representa- Craig J. Brown tion to those in danger of losing their homes. LSNF also secured new funding to provide Scott Carruthers sexual assault representation to our clients in the 14th Judicial Circuit, a much needed David Fonvielle expansion of our services. We continued to represent BP Oil Spill Victims and have re- Justice Major Harding covered nearly $3.4 million in claims to date. Justice Joseph Hatchett M. Catherine Lannon Anneli Magee As we look forward