Our Partnership
The Guardian ad Litem Foundation, 20th Judicial Circuit, Inc. was founded in 1983 (under the former name of Voices for Kids of SWFL) as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization to help identify, access and administer community resources and donations in support of the Guardian ad Litem Program – 20th Judicial Circuit in Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Glades and Hendry Counties.
The Guardian ad Litem (GAL) Program is a statewide child advocacy program commissioned by statute to represent the best interests of abused, neglected or abandoned children who have been removed from their homes, due to no fault of their own, and placed under court supervision. GAL provides trained, court-certified volunteer child advocates to
represent and monitor these children and to work toward a plan that ensures these children are ultimately in a safe, permanent home.
Foundation Mission
Mission: Ensure that every child in the dependency court system in Southwest Florida is represented by a Guardian ad Litem Volunteer Child Advocate.
Our aim is to provide a “voice” for all children in our region who have suffered identified abuse and need help.
The GAL Foundation strives to raise funds through private and corporate donations, grants, fundraising events, and sponsorships to fund our two programs.
Foundation Programs
Guardian ad Litem Support – Provides for the recruitment, training, retention, and support of Volunteer Child Advocates in the five counties of SW Florida.
Children’s Needs – Provides experiences and items, that other children can take for granted and are not met by other sources, to help reduce anxiety and bring a sense of normalcy to children assigned to Guardian ad Litem.
Goals
•Provide a Guardian ad Litem (GAL) Volunteer Child Advocate for 100% of the abused, neglected children in the 20th Judicial Circuit’s dependency court system.
• Fulfill 100% of the requests submitted for Normalcy Aid that meet policy guidelines within each fiscal year.
• ULTIMATE GOAL: Help these children, who live in a state of crisis, find a permanent, safe home.