In the greater Charlotte area, Congregations for Kids is dedicated to empowering the community to advocate for children, families, and social workers within the foster care system through four pathways: Foster, Mentor, Serve, Give.
CFK firmly believes that every child in foster care deserves a dedicated champion by their side, knowing that a positive relationship with a caring adult can profoundly alter the course of a child’s life. CFK also holds the conviction that everyone has the capacity to make a meaningful difference in the life of a child.
CFK operates with a foundation of faith, recognizing that while not all who engage with us share our faith, our core values of dignity, respect, valued relationships, and integrity are universally upheld. CFK serves all children, families, foster parents, and social workers, embracing diversity in all its forms and affirming the inherent dignity and worth of each individual.
CFK is committed to treating everyone we serve with care and respect, acknowledging and honoring their unique differences and cultural backgrounds. CFK recognizes the importance of nurturing positive relationships, understanding that these connections are vital for fostering positive change and promoting the well-being of youth in foster care.
Jon Hogan, CRPC™
Partner | Wealth Advisor
INITIATIVE
CFK has four simple pathways to help you become a champion for kids in foster care: Foster. Mentor. Serve. Give. Various members of the SouthPark Capital team are engaged in the Mentor program, volunteering at events, and the firm works with CFK as a corporate sponsor as well as frequently participating in the CareNow platform, which meets immediate material needs identified by social workers. In these ways, our team is lifting up the larger CFK efforts. In fact, by working on this project internally we learned that one of our own employees used to be a foster kid herself. The amazing thing is that she’s decided to coordinate our efforts with CFK at SouthPark Capital. We couldn’t be more inspired.
WHY CFK?
George Terlizzi, SouthPark Capital founder, worked as a child in his father’s church that operated buses into some of the poorest neighborhoods in Chicago. George’s job was to run into the “projects” and gather up the kids who wanted to attend services, a small break from their bleak day-to-day experience surrounded by drugs and violence. Although George was in humble financial circumstances himself, this experience helped him to realize that there were children all around him in truly extreme need.
Leaving a Legacy
Fast forward to today and George learned his own church in Charlotte was supporting CFK which allowed him the opportunity to continue the lessons from his youth generationally with his own daughter who has grown up in far more comfortable circumstances than he did.
Once that began, it was only a matter of time until what the family was doing at home became a part of the extended work family at SouthPark Capital. And while George’s daughter is growing into adulthood with a heart softened by her experiences, now Jon Hogan, George’s Partner at SouthPark Capital twelve years younger than George, thinks of his own young sons and the lessons he seeks to impart to them.
