Fifth Third Bank recently concluded Summer of Dreams, a free 10-week program, which provided local homeless students with food, academic and STEM enrichment, activities, mentoring, school supplies and financial counseling for parents. Summer of Dreams served more than 190,000 meals during the course of the summer and also enabled 1,800 students and families to attend Fifth Third Bank’s financial counseling seminars. In total, the program impacted 1,467 children this year throughout Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties – up 18 percent from 2012.
Fifth Third Bank’s Summer of Dreams’ success was made possible by the collaborative efforts of community partners such as Orlando After-School All-Stars, Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida, Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida and A Gift for Teaching. Major sponsors included Siemens, The Lawrence E. White Family Foundation, Tijuana Flats’ Just In Queso Foundation, Darden Restaurants and OUC –The Reliable One.
“Through our public-private partnership, Summer of Dreams has reached a total of 3,748 children since 2011,” said Karen Dee, president of Florida and Mid-South regions for Fifth Third Bank. “But, we know there are thousands more in our community who need help. That is why we’ve already begun fundraising for next summer. We hope that these efforts will allow us to provide resources – such as food, school supplies and financial counseling – to even more local families in 2014.”
To learn more about sponsorship opportunities or how to get involved, visit www.TheSummerofDreams.com.
