For me selfless love is having people who make you feel welcome, people who listen to you and people who make sure that you are safe and stable.
I have found this with One Voice IMPAACT (OVI), Selfless Love Foundation’s youth voice initiative. When I attended my first OVI training, I was nervous. But Diamond, OVI’s Youth Engagement Specialist made me feel welcomed, so I started opening up a little bit.
They gave me a safe space to have a voice; they gave me the spotlight that I never had before. I felt like I could talk about my problems and issues that I have seen first-hand as a youth who aged out of the child welfare system at 18 years old.
I was amazed by all the efforts that OVI has put toward many communities across Florida, and I was so eager to learn more. Since I am a college student at Saint Petersburg College, my psychology class is doing a project on non-profit organizations. Of course, I chose Selfless Love Foundation because I would like many of my peers to learn about the good that Selfless Love does for foster youth. I have learned a lot through my project about Selfless Love Foundation and how it began in July of 2015.
Their first project called Brown’s Harbor was dedicated to giving aged out foster youth a chance for independence through supportive housing. As many know, it is very difficult for youth to find housing after turning 18 due to a lack of guidance and support. I would like to thank all of the amazing women and men who dedicated their time to supporting the Selfless Love Foundation. Thank you for all that you do!
Hello! My name is Bianca Feliciano, I am a 22-year-old college student studying Social Services at St. Petersburg College. I also have a license in Cosmetology that I accomplished this year and two years of dental hygiene at State College of Florida. I love spending time with my family and watching A LOT of Netflix. I love ALL sorts of animals and I also paint from time to time. I started being involved with OVI this year and I absolutely enjoy OVI. I love the training we do to help us better understand how to make change in our community. In my future, I hope to work with children and youth in the system. I want to be able to make a difference in every family I come across. I am very excited for my future!