Matt Walsh, Fiona McFarland, and Bob and Mary Jane Martinez headlined the Sarasota celebration.
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The Florida Network of Youth and Family Services celebrated its 50th anniversary at its annual meeting in Sarasota last week, and it came with a balance sheet: 14,333 youth and families served in 2025, and an estimated $9.19 returned to the state for every $1 it spends on prevention.
Members of the Network’s 21 member organizations, elected officials, and stakeholders convened for the two-day celebration, built around the theme “Honoring the Past, Leading the Present, and Shaping the Future.” The program walked attendees through the Network’s history and the people, milestones, and communities behind its work to reach youth and families before they hit a crisis.
Founded on July 23, 1976, in response to the youth runaway crisis, the Florida Network now runs a statewide system of care that reaches all 67 counties. Services include emergency shelter, counseling, family intervention, prevention services, and community-based support, delivered at no cost to families through the state’s Children and Families in Need of Services program, known as CINS/FINS.
In 2025, the Network and its member organizations supported 14,333 youth and their families, provided safe shelter to 4,067 youth, logged 75,231 shelter bed days, and hosted 58 outreach events.
A 2024 economic impact study by Analytic Initiatives, Inc., estimated the state’s return on CINS/FINS spending at $9.19 for every $1 invested and identified nearly $410 million in cost savings over an 18-month period.
“For 50 years, generation after generation has accepted the responsibility of carrying this work forward,” said Florida Network President and CEO Stacy Gromatski. “We are the stewards of what others built before us, and it is our responsibility to build on that foundation for the generations to come.”
Florida Department of Juvenile Justice Secretary Matt Walsh delivered the keynote. Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Walsh, a former Deputy Executive Director of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, in August 2025. His agency funds the Network’s CINS/FINS work statewide.
“The common theme across the continuum of care is that this work is a calling, and each of you has been called to serve at-risk youth through the lens of love and compassion,” Walsh said.
“Whether you’ve been doing this work for weeks, months or years, you are part of a collective effort to raise the bar for youth and families across Florida. Together, we are leading into the future through increased collaboration, stronger advocacy and an unwavering commitment to the young people we serve.”
Rep. Fiona McFarland, a Sarasota Republican, also addressed attendees.
“The human connection is the thing that is most at risk in this day and age,” McFarland said. “Our families and children in Florida deserve for these issues to be cared about, and the Florida Network provides a critical connection between young people, families and the resources they need.”
The Network also honored former Gov. Bob Martinez and former First Lady Mary Jane Martinez for their commitment to Florida’s youth and families. As First Lady, Mary Jane Martinez advocated for homeless, runaway, and troubled youth, work that helped shape the Network as it exists today.
“When Bob was elected, I thought I would do what I could for the young people in the state of Florida, and it’s been an honor and a great privilege for me,” she said.
Gromatski said the mission going into the next 50 years is unchanged.
“Prevention, partnership, community, family and second chances remain at the heart of who we are,” she said. “We look forward to carrying that mission into the next 50 years.”
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Ed. note: This story was drafted with assistance from AI. Editorial judgment, sourcing, and final review were performed by Peter Schorsch and the Florida Politics editorial team.
The post 50 years in, Florida Network of Youth and Family Services makes the business case for prevention appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..
