The Friendship Circle model involves carefully matching teen volunteers one-to-one with children who have special needs, providing the mentoring and friendship that these children seek.
Our model promotes inclusion and builds social and recreational skills among children, teens, and young adults with special needs, regardless of their level of ability. Beginning with a pilot program and handful of children in 2004, we have served hundreds of children with special needs and empowered thousands of teenagers to become community leaders, advocates, and role-models.
The facility we currently operate our 21 programs out of has become insufficient to manage our tremendous growth and lacks the necessary space to introduce new, innovative services we aspire to offer and that families seek.
Under the leadership and direction of our Board of Directors, we are planning to build a 20,000 sq ft state-of-the-art campus where individuals with special needs will shine: The Friendship Campus. This new campus will be Miami's first community center for individuals with special needs, and it will house everything for our special participants, their families, and our teen volunteers, all in one place.
The most powerful force in society is a child with a dream coupled with the knowledge, nurturing and means to achieve that dream. The Friendship Campus IS a lifelong dream for children with special needs and their families. We hope you will help us make this dream a reality by joining us to meet our $7.5 million goal to develop a beautiful state-of-the-art home for our children, for now, and for the future.
Click here to learn more about our programs.
Friendship Circle of Miami, Inc
2020/21 Board of Directors
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David Evensky, RMA
Board Chair Principal
Evensky & Katz/Foldes Financial -
Tracey Berkowitz
Board Secretary Trustee
Fairholme Foundation -
Paul Kaplan
Board Treasurer Co-Founder
KW Property Management
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Dr. Diane Adreon
Associate Director
UM-NSU CARD -
Rossana Arteaga-Gomez
AXS Law Group
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Judge Stanford Blake
Former Judge, 11th Judicial Circuit
Principal, Stanford Blake Mediation
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Stacy Bolduc
Family Member/Volunteer
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Monica Cantera-Serralta
Pan American Companies
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Joel Zev Drizin
Entrepreneur
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Libby Herrera-Navarette
Phillips, Richard and Rind, P.A.
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Robert Josefsberg
Partner
Podhurst Orseck P.A.
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Michele Kaplan
President & Co-Founder
Families for Fragile X
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Alex Krys
Managing Member
Juniper Capital Partners, LLP
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Barry Lapides
Partner/Shareholder
Berger Singerman, LLP
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Jason Margulies
Partner
Lipcon, Margulies, Alsin & Winkleman, P.A.
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Claudia Potamkin
Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, Volunteer
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Commissioner Raquel Regalado
Miami-Dade County Commissioner, District 7
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Dr. Trevor Resnick, M.D.
Former Chief, Department of Neurology,
Nicklaus Children’s Hospital
Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology,
University of Miami School of Medicine
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Joe Roisman
Executive Vice President
Perry Ellis International
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Todd Ruderman
Tarco Properties, LLC & Value Store It Mgmt
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Jason Shapiro
Managing Director, Aztec Group, Inc.
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DeWayne Terry
Partner
Rubenstein Law
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Ex-Officio Members
Rabbi Yossef Harlig
Executive Director
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Nechama Harlig
Co-Director