Joanie grew up in a household where her parents and grandparents were politically involved and very active in their community. She learned early on that her responsibility extends past the safety of the walls of her home. Throughout most of her life, her parents and sister’s family fostered children for Little Flowers Children’s Home. When Joanie became a mother she strongly believed that there was always room for one or two more. She became a foster parent in New York, then in Florida. In the course of 32 years, Joanie fostered and housed quite a few children. She adopted 4. Joanie also opened her house to 12 foreign students from France, Germany, and Africa. Two young men from Bangladesh were rescued from a war-ridden area, so they were able to continue their studies here in the United States. Joanie’s passion is working with children, teens, and young adults with significant medical and emotional challenges. With her experience and in-depth research, she developed a board-based knowledge and understanding of their strengths and needs. She loved the challenge of developing trust and creating hope, no matter what their circumstance.
Joanie earned an Associates’s Degree from Brevard Community College (BCC) and earned acceptance into the Phi Theta Kappa honor society before pursuing a Bachelors’s in Social Work from the University of Central Florida (UCF). She continued on to an accelerated Masters in Social Work program graduating Magna Cum Laude. Joanie’s career in social work is quite extensive. She started as an intern at Health Start in Cocoa where she facilitated expectant mothers. Later she became the Mental Health Coordinator for Child Care Association. Joanie also worked at Deveruex as a Clinical Therapist. Joanie was invited by the CEO at Intervention Services to assist in the opening of a new foster/adoption program in Brevard County. In the course of 5½ years, they recruited over 75 families, with 23 in training despite the fact being told the area was saturated.
Joanie was offered and accepted a management position at Country Acres Children’s Home where she remained for a little over 3 years. She resigned after adopting a child from the home and getting back into foster care in order to reach out to other communities. During her final year at Country Acres, Joanie was successful at raising $80,000 in donations and in-kind services. Her final performance review was extremely positive.
Joanie continued to pursue her educational goals at Florida Christian University graduating with honors and receiving a Ph.D. in Philosophy and Clinical Counseling. While in school, she became a Community Educator/Parent Support at Yellow Umbrella, providing training for both the School Board, Child Care Association, and other Community Partners. She also accepted a position at Crosswinds Youth Services as the therapist with the Transitional Living Program and worked with homeless youth and at-risk youth in foster care.
The stories and experiences of Joanie’s children, foster children, and those she had been privileged to serve in the community live on as characters in her books. The first of 6 books have been released through Christian Faith Publishing. Joanie has dedicated her life, her finances, and her home to numerous at-risk youth. She’s known for putting her children, natural or fostered, first! Joanie brings over 30 years of professional and personal foster care experience to Operation Phoenix, Inc. In addition to the service Joanie will provide as Vice President, she has graciously offered to impart her knowledge in the training of Age Out of the Ashes new hires and on-going coaching to ensure our program has the most professional and knowledgeable staff in the industry.
