This year, the Terrell • Hogan law firm provided holiday support to the Clara White Mission which facilitates care for the indigent and homeless population in Northeast Florida. Terrell • Hogan provided the Clara White Mission Center with donations and volunteers to assist in serving daily meals.
Everyone at Terrell • Hogan is glad to offer support for this wonderful organization. The large truck load of donations included professional clothing for job interviews, household goods, toiletries, toys and monetary donations for haircuts and other necessary items to help individuals get back into the job market. “The generous donations are a reflection of the people at our law firm. It gives me great joy to help our firm make a difference in so many lives this holiday season,” said Cynthia Ali, the Terrell • Hogan staffer who coordinated the giving.
The firm also enjoyed partnering with Clara White’s Ashley Street Catering for its holiday party. The party was held in the Elbow District of Downtown Jacksonville and was a huge success; the food was delicious and everyone at Terrell • Hogan complimented the professional, efficient and friendly work of Ashley Street Catering.
The Clara White Mission is a non-profit organization founded in 1904. The Mission Center provides meals and advancement through educational programs. Today, the Mission Center provides 400 meals each day, seven days a week. Transitional housing, for up to two years, assists the homeless during their search for a job and home. Clara White Mission operates Ashley Street Catering, a catering business preparing trainees for the workforce, and Clara’s at the Cathedral, a weekly upscale lunch event in the St. John’s Cathedral where culinary-program graduates exhibit their cooking and serving skills.
Wayne Hogan, president of Terrell • Hogan summed it up, saying “Our law partner, Mike Sharrit, serves on the board of Clara White, and recommended Clara White and Ashley Street Catering. His judgment was 100% correct. They do a great job in their principal mission and took great care of us as we celebrated the holidays and helped support the very important work they do for people and all of Jacksonville.”
Since the inception of the vocational program, 703 students have graduated and 65% of those placed in employment remain in the workforce. In 2012, graduates of the Clara White Mission program, working an average of 32 hours, at an average starting wage of $10.00/per hour impacted the economy of our community by more than $1.7 million dollars through earned income. Clara White Mission provides life-changing opportunities for graduates combined with life skills designed to make them employable in careers that offer a future of sustainability and success, offering a “hand up, not a hand out.”
“The Clara White Mission is proud to be recognized by Terrell • Hogan this December as their adopted Charity for the 2013 Holiday,” said Ju’Coby Pittman, President and CEO of the Clara White Mission. “The Christmas holidays will be that much more special for homeless veterans and low income families served by the Clara White Mission because of your generous donations. We were excited and pleased that our Ashley Street Catering team helped make the 2013 Terrell • Hogan Christmas party a special and enjoyable event. We are looking forward to this ever growing relationship and partnership,” she said.