Child Protection Center Awarded Grant from COVID-19 Response Initiative

Funding Will Support Children and Families Supervised Visitation Program

The Child Protection Center, Inc. (CPC) was selected as the recipient of a $7,500 grant for virtual programming from the COVID-19 Response Initiative of Gulf Coast Community Foundation and Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation.

This grant supports CPC’s Children and Families Supervised Visitation Program (CFSVP), which has transitioned to providing virtual visits to continue its vital services during the pandemic. CPC has seen a sharp increase in the number of visits being performed, despite a reduction of funds. 100 virtual visits were conducted in the month of April and 109 in the month of May, while 746 visits took place in fiscal year 2019.

Established in 1995, CFSVP provides a safe place for children to interact with parents without the stress of being in the middle of a family argument, observing a parent who is impaired by substance abuse and without uncomfortable conversations that include adult topics. About 70 Sarasota County citizens serve as CFSVP volunteers, who supervise visitation between children and families who have been identified as being at heightened risk of physical or emotional harm due to parenting behaviors. By accessing the CFSVP, the risk of violence to children will decrease. Ongoing parent and child contact, through supervised visitation, has been shown to be crucial to a child’s mental health and ability to build a healthy relationship with the non-custodial parent.

“Seeing families reunited is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. I have seen that most parents just want a second chance and will do what it takes to make that happen,” said a CFSVP volunteer. 

In fiscal year 2019, CPC provided 71,299 services to individuals. For more information on CPC or the Supervised Visitation Program, visit www.cpcsarasota.org or call 941-365-1277