Mayor’s Forum on Ending Homelessness for Homeless Awareness Day
November 15, 2012, 8:00 am – 9:30 am
Chapman Partnership
1550 North Miami Avenue

Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez, along with The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, will kick off Homeless Awareness Day 2012 with the “Mayor’s Forum on Ending Homelessness.”  This business forum will be used to recognize local businesses that have a long track-record of hiring the homeless and of supporting efforts to end homelessness in ourcommunity.  In addition, an expanded and enhanced centralized employment helpline for businesses needing permanent or day-labor employees who are formerly homeless and are job-ready will be launched. The businesses to be recognized for their exemplary support of the homeless community include:
 
•  Patty King (Majesty Foods):  In the last four years, they have provided day-labor training to approximately 280 homeless or formerly homeless individuals and hired more than a dozen formerly homeless employees.
 
•   The City of Miami Beach, Public Works Department Sanitation Division, which has provided more than 10,000 hours of day labor training to homeless individuals in the past 15 years.
 
•   Macy’s Aventura and Dadeland Malls for hosting super-sized Britto Meters to collect spare change and bills; 100% percent of donations go directly to homeless services. 
 
•   Bayside Marketplace for sponsoring and installing Homeless Trust Meters since the Spare-Change Meter Program began four years ago, and donating fountain coins.

About Homeless Awareness Day:  The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust is pleased to be the driving force behind four consecutive years of Homeless Awareness Day celebrations.  The day is designed to raise and create awareness and unify providers, our community, families andstudents in an effort to educate and inspire change, and ultimately, end homelessness.  For more information go to: www.miamidade.gov/homeless/ .