The Roundtable launched Kids at Hope in St. Lucie County in 2007 and it has been embraced throughout our community. Since then, hundreds of community, school, city and county employees and residents have been trained in the Kids at Hope belief system, and thousands of children have been impacted. The cities of Fort Pierce and Port St. Lucie, as well as St. Lucie County, have all adopted resolutions to be Kids at Hope communities!
Roundtable staff has trained more than 150 organizations, including youth serving agencies, childcare facilities, and all employees of the City of Fort Pierce, Fort Pierce Police Department, and St. Lucie County Parks and Recreation.
In January 2015 the Kids at Hope Trainer Certification Academy was held at the Indian River State College Schreiber Center. Participants came from many organizations, agencies, counties and schools to be trained as Kids at Hope Trainers. Rick Miller, Kid at Hope Founder and Treasure Hunter, prepared a new crop of 29 trainers to deliver the belief and practice of Hope throughout our community!
Also in January 2015 the Roundtable hosted a Community Leaders Kids at Hope Forum with the theme "Restoring the Village, Restoring our Youth". Rick Miller, Kids at Hope Founder and Treasure Hunter, led a spirited discussion involving agency leaders, elected officials, and practicioners. During the Forum, leaders discussed how to dig deeper with Kids at Hope by making sure we support our KAH partners in continuing to connect kids with caring adults, and empowering children to articulate their futures in each of the four destinations.