Inside
TRAC
— February 2006
For more information, visit
www.traconline.org or call (214) 370-9300
TRAC's 3rd
Anniversary
It's hard to
believe but TRAC opened its doors on March 18, 2003 - that's just 3
short years ago. We have now had almost 1500 young people
referred to us, served by a staff of now over 20; and a budget of
$1.4 million for 2006. We have 3 offices: Wilson Historic
District in Dallas, Lena Pope Home in Ft. Worth and - just opening -
at Azleway in Grand Prairie.
All of this is
only possible because of the strength of our collaborative
relationships all over North Texas. TRAC partners' next
quarterly meeting is set for April 6 at Azleway. Please join us!
Contact
Evy Kay to be added to the TRAC
Regional Advisory Council.
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We are excited to announce the Transition Resource Action Center's
first annual benefit on the weekend of May 5-7 at the Texas
Motor Speedway.
The
Sunburn Grand Prix, is
sponsored by the
Texas Region Sports Car Club of
America.
We encourage and
welcome all North Texas Foster Families to attend this event
FREE of
charge. You can order your tickets
online or you can call our office. For others
wanting to attend, tickets are on sale for $10 per ticket and can be
purchased at the box office the day of the event.
TRAC would like to offer you the
opportunity to assist us with this three day event. Sponsors
and volunteers are both needed. If you would like to help or
would like an information packet, please contact
Danielle Diercks.
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Get Ready with OnTRAC
For youth who are six months or
less from emancipating from care and don't feel totally prepared
for the move to be on their own, OnTRAC
is the place to be! The next class will be Feb. 18, 2006 at
10:00 AM at Bank of Texas (600 Penn St. Ft. Worth, TX
76102) in Fort Worth and on Feb. 25, 2006
at 10:00 AM at TRAC in Dallas.
But if you miss this one, don't worry! TRAC will be offering OnTRAC several times a year to refresh your practical knowledge of all
your possible PAL benefits such as: transitional Medicaid, college information/tuition
waiver, and PAL transitional living allowance.
The group will also go over
all those great life skills you learned in PAL classes and have never had
to use in the real world. According to Jennifer Grant, "It's PAL squished into
one day AND a barrel of fun!" Email
David
or call him to reserve your space.
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TRAC's 4th Career Fair
TRAC
will host its fourth career fair February 22, 6:00 - 8:00 pm
at TRAC for youth in substitute care. Youth will have the chance to meet
professionals from various business and private sectors such as a
nurse, a police officer, a teacher, a firefighter, a lawyer, a
barber, a cosmetologist, an electrician, a day care worker, a social
worker, a business owner, and a call center specialist. They
will get a first-hand, realistic perspective on what it takes to get
a start and be successful in these careers.
For more information, contact
Kenya
Havis.
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Managing
Money
This is a tough topic for everyone,
especially teens. TRAC will offer a three class series
designed to build skills in budgeting and money management.
March 1 is the start date for the Dallas class, and April 5, for
Tarrant county.
For more information, contact
David
Hansard.
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Youth Alumni and Leadership Team
Would you like to improve your
leadership and decision-making skills, learn about problem-solving
and attend a fun weekend retreat with other youth your age? Or
do you know someone who would be interested in our Youth Alumni and Leadership Team.
As a founding member, youth will help
develop the foundation for the group, create group projects and
goals as well as recruit additional members. Youth must be willing to
make a commitment to the group by attending activity-based sessions
on these dates: April 1, April 5, April 19, the weekend of April 28
and May 10.
For youth interested in making changes
to the foster care system, developing leadership skills, advising on
programming at TRAC and/or hanging
out with other youth/alumni from foster care, please contact
David
Hansard as soon as possible.
The deadline for applying is Feb. 24,
2006 so call NOW!
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PAL
classes are on track!
TRAC contracts with Child Protective Services to
teach the Preparation for Adult Living classes. Classes are scheduled
all over North Texas.
They are planned for
Denton,
Ellis, Hunt, Tarrant and Dallas
counties and will be offered wherever we have a
need.
TRAC offers PAL
classes to youth referred by the CPS Preparation for
Adult Living staff. For more in information
on PAL classes, please contact
Carly Ryan, a
member of our PAL Training Team.
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Be a Mentor. Get a Mentor.
TRAC's mentor program is
helping
youth connect with caring
adults.
Want to learn more? Visit
our
website
or contact
Shakiki Thomas, the
Mentor Manager.
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Donate to TRAC
You
can donate to TRAC by giving monetarily (check or gift cards); donating items (household and furniture); volunteering
your time to be a mentor or a classroom aide for life skills
training. Click
here for more information.
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Get started on an ITP!
Completing an Individual Transition
Plan (ITP)
at TRAC can help you
map out immediate and long term goals.
Want to learn more? Contact
Jennifer Grant, the TRAC Coordinator.
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Subscribe to the TRAC
e-newsletter |
Calendar of Events
February
18 - Ellis PAL class starts
18 - Denton PAL graduation
18 - OnTRAC - Tarrant
21 - Dallas PAL graduation
22 - Career Fair at TRAC
25 - Mentor orientation - Dallas
25 - Mentor training - Dallas
25 - OnTRAC - Dallas
27 - Parenting class - Dallas
March
1 - Financial Literacy starts - Dallas
7 - Mentor training 1 - Tarrant
8 - Mentor training 2 - Tarrant
20 - Dallas PAL starts
25 - Mentor orientation - Dallas
25 - Mentor training - Dallas
27 - Parenting class - Dallas
April
1 - Hunt County PAL starts
1 - Youth Alumni Leadership starts
4 - Tarrant PAL starts
5 - Financial Literacy starts - Tarrant
8 - OnTRAC - Tarrant
11 - TRAC Regional Advisory Council
meeting
20 - Mentor Recognition event
22 - Mentor training - Dallas
24 - Parenting class - Dallas
*Parenting classes will be starting in
Tarrant County soon. Contact
Kelley
Donovan for more information.
On-Site
Contacts
|
Dallas
214-370-9300 |
Toll Free
866- 4ON-TRAC |
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Satellite
Offices in Ft. Worth & Grand Prairie open by appointment |
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Ft. Worth
817-255-2634 |
Grand Prairie
972-206-2885
x38 |
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at the
TRACK