HISTORY: Paul’s Place began in the fall of 2000 as a response to the mainly Haitian-American children living in the neighborhood surrounding the church who were in the need of a safe haven and homework help. The Vestry recognized the need, contributed the seed money and the program was formalized with the hiring of a full-time Director.
GOAL: Since 2000, the after school has served more than 125 elementary, middle and high school students providing them with an environment filled with caring mentors who tutor the students and assist with homework to improve academic performance, social skills and self-confidence. Our goal is to give the students the tools and support they need to stay in school, graduate and go on to college or viable jobs.
CURRENT: Paul’s Place currently welcomes 30 students each school day. Eighteen of the students are 
in elementary school, 10 are middle school age and 2 are high school age. They begin arriving about 2:15 pm and stay until 7:00 pm. During those hours the students receive tutoring, work on social skills, have a nutritional snack and a balanced family-style meal, participate in a variety of extracurricular activities and enjoy an “earned” Friday field trip. School visits are regularly arranged to meet with guidance counselors to make sure our students remain on track. Although academics are an important focus at Paul’s Place, we frequently provide a variety of non-academic services to our children and their families in order to promote their overall well-being (e.g., social service referrals, medical appointments, transportation needs, clothing, food, etc).
SUMMER ENRICHMENT:Paul’s Place offers a Summer Enrichment Program for our middle and high school aged children. This past year we had 8 students attend 4 days per week throughout the summer. The students participated in a Book Club, which greatly improved their reading and vocabulary skills, and learned about topics such as: Health and Nutrition, Table Manners and Etiquette, College and Career Planning, Managing Money, and World Geography. We provided breakfast and a family style meal each day. On Fridays we took the students on different field trips around our area.
STAFF: Kathy Fazio is the Director of the program. She started in 2000 at Paul’s Place as a volunteer and
member of the Task Force. In 2007, she transitioned into the full time position she currently holds. Taylor Kilpatrick began as the Assistant Director in early 2016 to oversee the middle and high school students as well as to run the Summer Enrichment Program. Miliene Dallegrand is a part time mentor who started with Paul’s Place in 2014. She recently took on the added responsibility of being our Art Director and provides assistance in communicating with our Creole speaking families.
VOLUNTEERS: The success of Paul’s Place and its hardworking students relies heavily on our volunteer support. We are always grateful for a donation of time. There are many ways to get involved: mentoring, cooking, driving, gardening and fundraising. Please call Kathy Fazio at 561-276-4541 or email at kmcfeelyfazio@gmail.com to get information on volunteer opportunities at Paul’s Place.
FINANCIAL SUPPORT: All of the services that we provide are at no charge to our children and their families. Paul’s Place raises all of it funds to sustain the program. We receive support from our church, family foundations, grants and individual donations.
Paul’s Place acknowledges and is grateful for the support of Episcopal Charities of Southeast Florida and for all those who volunteer and support the mission of Paul’s Place.
