JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Building on the success of Freed to Run, Jacksonville Area Legal Aid and Gunster Shareholder Mike Freed are launching a new initiative to create a Shelter for Elders endowment that will safeguard and strengthen JALA’s housing-related legal assistance for indigent seniors.
“With Freed to Run, we created permanent legal aid funding to serve Northeast Florida children whose health issues are further complicated by their civil legal needs,” Freed said. “Now we are going to do the same for our elders who are faced with housing insecurity in their golden years.”
Along with the new endowment comes a new event format.
While Freed to Run was a six-marathon series from the Florida Supreme Court in Tallahassee to the Duval County Courthouse, the Freed to Run Challenge will take place on the streets surrounding the courthouse over just two days, Friday, Nov. 17, to Saturday, Nov. 18.
Individual participants and relay teams will raise funds for the endowment through peer-to-peer fundraising based on a challenge to complete half-mile laps around the Duval County Courthouse in a period of either 12 or 24 hours.
The distance covered by each individual or team will be measured by counting the number of laps they complete around the courthouse at any pace they choose. Participants do not need to be runners.
The Shelter for Elders endowment will support JALA’s work to prevent and address housing issues such as reverse mortgage foreclosures, door-to-door scams, wrongful evictions, substandard living conditions, discriminatory practices, and other shelter-related challenges faced by vulnerable seniors.
Enabling seniors to shelter in place also results in positive health outcomes, as compared to when they are forced into long-term-care or other congregate living facilities.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other leading health organizations recognize housing stability as a social determinant of health. Trouble paying rent or spending the bulk of a household income on housing can negatively affect physical health and make it harder to access health care. JALA’s work with seniors also involves helping them address civil legal issues related to medical debt, which is at crisis levels in America.
“The Shelter for Elders endowment will provide a permanent funding source for legal resources, expert counsel, and advocacy services to supplement grant funding designated for seniors that has historically fallen well short of the need,” JALA President and CEO Jim Kowalski said. “And with our new event format, we anticipate that many more people will be able to participate. No one has to take a day off of work or travel to a distant starting point. Almost anyone can participate in an event that is entirely local on a weekend, and in which they can go at their own pace. One need not be a runner at all.”
Event co-chairs for the Freed to Run Challenge are Billie Jo “BJ” Taylor, a Jacksonville attorney with Harrell & Harrell, PA, and an active volunteer with JALA, Paul Ferrara, senior vice president–Commercial Banking for Ameris Bank, and Dr. Mandana Davani, who specializes in diagnostic radiology and nuclear medicine at Flagler Health+.
Former Jacksonville Sheriff Nat Glover will be the race starter on Nov. 17, and Olympian Garrett Scantling will be finish-line master of ceremonies on Nov. 18.
Anyone can register for the Freed to Run Challenge or donate to Shelter for Elders at jaxlegalaid.org/freedtorun to become a champion for justice, dignity, and housing security for indigent seniors in the Northeast Florida community.
About Jacksonville Area Legal Aid
Jacksonville Area Legal Aid is a nonprofit law firm focused on delivering economic, social, and housing justice to low-income and at-risk individuals and families on the First Coast.
If you are an attorney wanting to volunteer with probate and heirs property issues, contact JALA Pro Bono Director Aaron Irving, at (904) 356-8371, Ext. 363, or Aaron.Irving@jaxlegalaid.org.
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