Jayne Malfitano, president of the Harcourt M. & Virginia W. Sylvester Foundation officially opens the Sylvester Family West Campus. Pictured left to right are: Jeff & Aggie Stoops, Rex Kirby, David Layman, HomeSafe CEO Matt Ladika, Jayne Malfitano, Laura Sylvester, Larry Gonnello, Steve Bernstein, Abby Bernstein-Henderson, & Tarra Pressey
Excitement was in the air on April 6 when HomeSafe and 50 of its supporters and friends celebrated the opening of its brand-new campus in West Palm Beach, the Sylvester Family West Campus. This innovative residential campus will provide a welcoming and safe environment for young victims of child abuse to heal from their trauma and find confidence in their future.
“This is truly a transformative time for the agency,” said Matthew Ladika, CEO of HomeSafe. “We are one of only five agencies in the state of Florida that provides a unique level of care in specialized therapeutic group homes for severely traumatized child abuse victims. This new campus, along with future construction projects, will help us continue our mission of creating safer, more productive lives for infants, children, young adults and families.”
The Sylvester Family West Campus consists of two buildings, the Residential Cottage and the Enrichment Center, totaling 15,356 square feet. The Residential Cottage offers 12 suites where each child will have their own private room and bathroom. The Cottage also has a large kitchen, living and dining areas, therapy wing and gaming area to create a comfortable home environment. The new Enrichment Center offers music and workout rooms, a multimedia lab, educational wing and has a strategically designed layout so that staff will have even better supervision of the children. The 3.2 acre site also includes a nature trail, basketball court and gazebo which will provide for many outdoor activities.
The residential cottage will be home to 12 girls who are moving from HomeSafe’s campus off Haverhill Road which was sold back in 2018. Through the sale of the Haverhill campus and because of philanthropic support from the community, it was possible to build this campus. Only through generous philanthropy will HomeSafe continue to serve vulnerable children in Palm Beach County who need us most. The Harcourt M. & Virginia W. Sylvester Foundation, for whom the campus is named, has generously supported HomeSafe and its mission for nearly 30 years.
Jayne Malfitano, President of the Harcourt M. and Virginia W. Sylvester Foundation, shares, “We have supported HomeSafe because they have made a tremendous impact improving children’s lives. Now, more than ever, these children need help.”
The ribbon-cutting event also included the presentation of a $125,808 donation from West Palm Beach-based Verdex Construction, the general contractor for the project.
“As a past president and current member of the HomeSafe Board of Directors, I wanted to do everything we could to let the agency direct its budget to helping these children and not on construction costs,” said Rex Kirby, president of Verdex.
In addition to this new campus, HomeSafe has plans to build an additional new campus in West Palm Beach, and much-needed renovations to the group homes on its Lake Worth and Boca Raton campuses. The excitement continues!
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