Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 9-25-18

Local Hillsborough County News
One Church One Child of Florida, Inc.:
Featured Youth Likes To ‘Try New Things’
All of our communities are experiencing times when children are being taken from their homes and placed in the foster care system at very high rates. The need for temporary placements is crit- ical until permanency can be achieved.
One Church One Child of Florida, Inc., is reaching out to families and individuals in local communities across the state in efforts to help share the truth that over 700 chil- dren are waiting for a perma- nent home and/or mentor, many are minorities.
Can you provide a loving, permanent home for these children or other children like them or consider becom- ing their mentors?
Churches are asked to partner with One Church One Child in sharing infor- mation with congregations and extending Watch-Care Ministries to children. Rev. Beverly Hills Lane, State President for One Church One Child of Florida and Vice-President for National One Church One Child, is challenging fellow Pastors to get involved and encouraging families to open their hearts and homes to children in fos- ter care.
These series of articles feature children located in communities across the state. They have no family identified to adopt them, will you take the challenge of opening your home and fam- ily to parenting them?
September’s child de- serves to have a family. Do pray sincerely for him and consider making him a part of your family through adop- tion or a part of your church through Project Watch-Care, for support and mentoring.
JOSHUA, 11
by CSallustio Photography
Always game to try new things!
Joshua’s a sweet soul with a silly sense of humor. He’s wicked smart, does great in school (with all ad- vanced classes!) and can build amazing Lego creations from his imagination. If he could have any superpower he’d want to be able to change himself into an ani- mal, specifically a cheetah so that - in the event of an emer- gency - he could “carry all the babies on [his] back and run them to safety.”
This year Joshua learned that “everything is made out of atoms,” and he hopes to one day be famous for his intelligence. With such an active, inquisitive mind, it does Joshua good to see new places and try new things, and he’d like to be part of a family that’s on-the- go and involved in their com- munity.
Despite all that Joshua has endured, he keeps a gen- uine smile on his face and an openness in his heart. He de- serves to be part of an active, engaging two-parent home that can advocate for his ed-
ucation, support his dreams, and encourage him to shoot for the stars.
If you are interested in knowing more about Joshua and other children in foster care available for adoption, or if you would like to become a foster parent, mentor, partner or volunteer, please contact LaKay Fayson, Recruitment Coor- dinator for One Church One Child of Florida’s SunCoast Region, at (813) 707-7113 or lakay_fayson@ococfl.org. The website for One Church One Child of Florida is www.ococfl.org.
REV. BEVERLY HILLS LANE ... State President, National Vice President, One Church, One Child, Inc.
LAKAY FAYSON
...One Church, One Child Re- cruitment Coordinator, Florida’s SunCoast Region
Commissioner
Stacy White Hosts
Community Office
Hours In Brandon
Hillsborough County Commissioner Stacy R. White, District 4, will host community office hours from 10:30 a. m. to 12:30 p. m. at the Brandon Regional Library, 619 Vonderburg Dr., Brandon (33511), to hear from residents without them hav- ing to travel to County Center in downtown Tampa.
Commissioner White and his staff welcome this oppor- tunity to meet residents one-on-one as they sign in to discuss their thoughts and concerns on various projects and commu- nity issues taking place in Hillsborough County. This event will not be in a townhall format.
No appointment is necessary to meet with Commissioner White and his staff. Residents are seen individually on a first- come, first-served basis.
Customer Service
Center In Northdale
Temporarily Closed
Hillsborough County’s Northdale Customer Service Center, 15610 Premiere Drive in Tampa, has been temporarily closed for air conditioning maintenance and repair.
The service center allows residents to pay their Hillsborough utilities bills in person or ask questions about their account. Residents have several options while work is underway:
Pay in Person: Brandon Customer Service Center, 332 N. Falkenburg Road, Tampa, FL 33619. Hours are Monday through Friday, 8 a. m. to 5 p. m. Or pay at any Florida AM- SCOT location
Pay Online: HCFLGov.net/WaterBill
Pay by Mail: Send a check or money order to Hillsborough County Public Utilities Department, P.O. Box 30702, Tampa, FL 33630-3702
For other Customer Service: Call (813) 272-6680 or visit HCFLGov.net/AtYourService.
Infant Mortality
Awareness In
Hillsborough County
September is Infant Mortality Awareness Month and the Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County (DOH- Hillsborough) wants to highlight facts you may not know. Black infants in Hillsborough County are more than three times more likely to die during their first year of life, when compared to white infants.
In 2017, the infant death rate in Hillsborough County was 6.5 deaths per 1,000 live births. That translates to:
Black = 13
White = 4.2
Hispanic = 6.2
Preterm birth is the leading cause of infant deaths in the
county. Sudden Unexpected Infant Death Syndrome (SUIDS) also tops the list.
To reduce infant mortality cases, everyone needs to work to- gether. Here are a few tips:
• Nursing moms should breastfeed their babies unless the doctor doesn’t recommend it
• Always ensure babies are in a safe sleeping environment • Lead a healthy life before, during and after pregnancy For questions or more information, contact DOH-Hillsbor-
ough at (813) 307-8000.
PAGE 4 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2018