2025 NEWS

Annual Pet Food Drive

The Annual Pet Food Drive was held from April 1st to April 24th.
Donations were distributed to our Animal Community Partners in St. Johns County, as well as distribution to Pie in the Sky for the pets of their elderly homebound clients. 

Project Snack Pantry

For academic year 2024-2025, $9,215 of snacks and hygiene items were provided to the St. Augustine High School Snack Pantry. The majority of the items were through the generosity of individuals and organizations. This was the second year of this project that has been helpful and well received by the students. Monthly deliveries to SAHS resumed in August. In-kind and monetary donations are always welcome and help in meeting many of the needs of these students.​ Congratulations to St. Augustine High School for achieving an "A" rating, improving from a "C" ranking at the start of the 2023-2024 academic year.

  St. Josephs Neighborhood Center Single Mother Program added to Our Master List of Community Partners       

We are excited to add the St. Joseph Neighborhood Center Single Mothers' Program to our Master List of Non-Profit Community Partners. 
The purpose of this program is to support young single mothers who are open and willing to transform their lives and the lives of their children as they develop a healthier work/life balance. Students receive training and internships in a career, such as Certified Nursing Assistant, Phlebotomist, classes in financial fitness, cooking on a budget, parenting skills, business communication, spiritual support, as well as mentoring throughout the program. The students receive a weekly stipend and must have stable housing and reliable transportation. The program runs for a 6-month period.
sjncfl.org/young-single-working-mothers       904- 342-2665

Scholarship Awarded to High School Student for Further Education

Each year one or more scholarships are awarded to Homeless High School Seniors Enrolling in Further Education. The students are pursuing college or trade school education. The awardees receive $500 per year for books and other incidental expenses. Awardees are eligible for the yearly scholarship for up to 4 years of schooling. With the awarding of a scholarship to a 2025 high school graduate, this presently brings our total of students receiving scholarships this year to five.

Backpacks for Homeless High School Seniors Enrolling in Higher Education

In May sixteen Homeless High School Seniors enrolling in college or trade school programs received new backpacks that included an insulated water bottle, academic planner and gift cards as recognition of their hard work to overcome obstacles to their education and as tools to start their new educational journeys to improve their futures.​

Portable Electric Fans for Homebound Elderly

Pie in the Sky provides canned foods and fresh produce to 850 elderly homebound individuals in St. Johns County. Many have inadequate or no air conditioning. Workable used or new fans are collected for distribution by Pie in the Sky volunteers. Current total of fans provided: 36

School Supplies, Snacks & Hygiene Items​: August

Back to school Supplies were provided to 20 children at the Betty Griffin Crisis Center and supplies to the S.E.A. Community in Elkton.
Snacks & hygiene items were delivered to the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind (FSDB) and to the St. Augustine High School as part of Project Snack Pantry. Approximately 50 students at FSDB are from households throughout the State that cannot afford these items for their children's needs at the school during the week and on the long bus rides to and from the school on the weekends.

​Annual Food Drive​

Our Annual Food Drive occurred in October and November. 20 host sites (includes 1 neighborhood) collected non-perishable food items. $8,078 of food items was distributed as follows: Fruit Cove area (Christ Cupboard); Armstrong/Hastings area (SEA Community); St. Augustine area (Home Again St. Johns, Homeless Coalition St. Johns, Pie in the Sky and Port in the Storm/St. Francis House). Any individual size snacks were distributed to the St. Augustine High School Hive Pantry and the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind.
Thank you to the following host sites & neighborhoods: Ancient City Gymnastics, Bartram Academy (2) , Brighton Day Academy, Deerwood Academy St. Johns, Deerwood Academy Town Center, Goddard School St. Augustine, Julington Creek Plantation Rec Center, Kiddie Academy St. Johns, KinderCare Fruit Cove, O2B Kids Village North, Primrose School Crosswater Parkway, Primrose School Julington Creek, Primrose School St. Johns Forest, The Learning Experience Nocatee, UPS Stores at SR 13, Palencia Commons, and Rivertown, Reserve at Greenbrier Community.​

19th Annual Giving Tree Initiative​

Our ​​Annual Giving Tree Initiative occurred between November 1st through December 22nd resulting in distribution of over $72,000 of items, gift cards and monetary donations to our 40 Non-Profit Organization Partners serving our target populations of the Elderly, Veterans, Homeless, Abused, Children & Animals in St. Johns County. Each tag represented a wish or need of the clients of our Partner Organizations. 97% of the items requested cost $25-30 or less. The donations not only benefited the recipients at the holidays, but also the organizations in 2026.
Thank you to our host sites, their clients and our wonderful volunteers. 
HOST SITES:
NW ST. JOHNS: Bartram Academy, Bartram Trail Women's Club, Deerwood Academy- St Johns, Fruit Cove KinderCare, Goddard School - St. Johns, Julington Creek Plantation Rec. Center, Kiddie Academy of St. Johns, Bartram Trail Library, The UPS store-Julington Village, THE UPS Store- Rivertown Shops
MANDARIN: Atlas Physical Therapy, Julington Creek Animal Hospital, Julington Creek Animal Spa, Rona Bunch, Inc.
ST. AUGUSTINE: Ancient City Gymnastics, Atlas Physical Therapy- CR 210, Brighton Day Academy, Crossfit St. Augustine, Dogtown Resort St. Augustine, Rain River Learni ng Center, Riverview Club, SE Branch Library, Main Branch Library, Goddard School of St. Augustine, The UPS Store - Palencia Commons, VyStar Credit Union- St. Augustine, Windward Ranch Community
ANASTASIA ISLAND: Anastasia Fitness, Anastasia Island Library, Ocean Palms Community
WORLD GOLF VILLAGE: Atlas Physical Therapy
PONTE VEDRA BEACH: Coastal Oaks Community Outreach, Primrose School-Crosswater Parkway, Starling at Nocatee, Ponte Vedra Library, Goddard School- Ponte Vedra, VyStar Credit Union- Nocatee, VyStar Credit Union -Ponte Vedra Beach
Jacksonville: Atlantic Veterinary Hospital, Deerwood Academy-Centurian Parkway

​News from 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 can be found under Archives