Safety Net Foundation, Inc.

A Florida not-for-profit charitable service organization

Today, in the United States of America, a condition exists such that hundreds of thousands, possibly millions, of citizens are faced with the loss of home, assets, accumulated resources, basic necessities, livelihood and, ultimately, their health, security and participation in the social fabric of this country.

Through no fault of their own but due to illness, economic downturn or industry realignment, fully participating and contributing members of this great and powerful nation are forced into bankruptcy and poverty. Family structures are disrupted or destroyed, economic and societal position is lost, motivation and future hopes are dashed in the desperate scramble to meet the needs of the moment.

We speak here not of the chronically infirm, the substance dependent, the mentally or emotionally challenged, the traditionally oppressed populations of minority and immigrant status. The groups we seek to address are those temporarily displaced by circumstances beyond their control. Many good and well-placed programs exist to aid the aforementioned groups in time of need. Their works are, known & unknown, worthy of high praise and need to continue.

Comes to our attention a smaller but growing group of men and women that these service organizations are not positioned, or insufficiently funded, to assist. These people do not require long-term assistance programs. Rather, they need short-term aid; a period of illness and convalescence, a term of retraining due to employment disruption, a virtual “moment” of maintenance of their life and situation while their lives stabilize and turn back to a more normal path.

The needs are as varied as the situations; perhaps a family needs provision of food and toilet necessities for a month on an emergency basis while waiting to be approved in a more traditional program. It may be that a man, fresh from rehabilitation, needs a suit of clothes and a car or other transportation to attend job interviews to return to mainstream society. And far too many are familiar with the embarrassing loss of their entire worth while waiting for approval in the Social Security Disability system; a system that they were required to contribute to during their working years that seems forever bent on ensuring their total devastation before honoring its program commitment to insure against the occurrence of such a situation.

This country is based on a long tradition of neighbor helping neighbor. Witness the early days of barn raisings, bake sales, volunteer fire corps; of such stuff, the greatness of this nation is built. The legacy of ordinary citizens helping their fellows in temporary need has been lost. That function has been relegated by the citizens to their governmental agencies. But the government has failed miserably in this most basic of responsibilities to the people it is created to serve.

The examples and explanations for this failure could and has filled countless volumes. It is not our purpose here to either analyze the causes or effect the changes. We, rather, now propose a solution that circumvents the failures extant and offers real hope to those in need who fall outside the existing programs, be they private or public.

Won’t you join us in our efforts? Make a contribution, contact us about starting a chapter in your area, promote our cause to your friends, acquaintances and neighbors. Help us build a better world and reclaim the dignity of the American Spirit!

Evan Jackson Evans - CEO

David Mark Jessup - Exec. Director