JAGUARS FOUNDATION RECOGNIZES AGENCY STAFF & VOLUNTEERS FOR THEIR DEDICATION TO YOUTH
Because of the late start of tonight's game, there are no youth in the Jaguars Foundation Honor Rows®. However, The Foundation is proud to salute the hundreds of staff and key volunteers from participating nonprofit agencies who are seated in the Honor Rows section of the North End Zone. Their hard work, dedication and sacrifice make the Honor Rows program a success.
Honor Rows was instituted in 1995 during the Jacksonville Jaguars inaugural season, "The Season of Firsts." It is an innovative program that uses seats at Jaguars home games as incentives for young people to set and achieve ambitious but realistic goals. Goals are set typically in the areas of academics, behavior, nutrition and physical health, and community service. Agency staff, parents, and mentors assist youth in achieving their individual goals in order to earn their seat to a Jaguars home game. All youth make and keep a pledge to abstain from tobacco, alcohol and drugs.
This year, more than 4,200 seats have been awarded to 43 nonprofit agencies. Almost 3,300 youth alone will have participated in the program by the end of the 2006 season. In the past eleven seasons, the Foundation has awarded nearly 35,000 Honor Rows seats to youth, parents, mentors and agency staff. This is in addition to the donation of other charitable seats with an in-kind value of more than $420,000.
The Jaguars Foundation is sponsored by Reebok and Alltel. The United Way of NE Florida mobilizes game-day volunteers who ensure the safety and enjoyment of Honor Rows participants.
The following agencies are participating in the Foundation's Honor Rows program:
Bethel Baptist B.E.S.T. Academy
Big Brothers Big Sisters of North Florida
Boys & Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida
Bridge of Northeast Florida
Central Metropolitan CME Church
Child Guidance Center
Children's Home Society
Communities In Schools of Jacksonville, Nassau, & St. Johns
Community Connections of Jacksonville
Cultural Center of Ponte Vedra Beach
daniel, Inc.
Duval County 4-H Foundation
Empowerment Resources
EPIC Community Services
Families First
FRESH Ministries/ Monique Burr Foundation
Gateway Community Services
Girls Inc. of Jacksonville
Guardian of Dreams (St. Pius and Holy Rosary Schools)
HabiJax
Habitat for Humanity of Jacksonville Beaches
Hollybrook Homes
Jacksonville Public Library Foundation
Jacksonville Youth Sanctuary
Jewish Family & Community Services
Mali Vai Washington Kids Foundation
Metro Kids Konnection
Northeast Florida Community Action Agency
Otis Smith Foundation
PACE Center For Girls
Police Athletic League of Jacksonville and St. Johns County
Potter's House Christian Academy
River Region Human Services
Sanctuary of Northeast Florida
Shands Jacksonville - Sickle Cell Program
State Attorney's Office
The Children's Place
United Congregations For Communities & Youth
YMCA - Baker County