Churches in Central Florida and Around the World Respond with Donations

In response to the Pulse shootings, more than 30 local Latino and LGBTQ community leaders and organizations came together within 36 hours to support the #SomosOrlando campaign. The purpose was to advocate for funding, resources, and partnerships that would prioritize high-quality culturally and linguistically competent services targeting the Latinx LGBTQ community. We sought to change the narrative in mainstream media to one that recognized the fact that the attack disproportionately affected the Hispanic LGBTQ community, and that there are unique needs and strengths that should be front and center in the response. In the days that followed, faced with overwhelming needs, the founders of Somos Orlando shifted efforts to ensuring that concrete services are available in the short- and long-term.

Based on media reports and information gathered from interactions with the victims’ families and friends, of the 49 lives lost, the majority were Hispanic, and 23 were Puerto Rican. There were at least an additional 106 in the club that night who survived. Counting family and friends of the victims and survivors, it is estimated that more than 1,000 people were affected by this tragedy. SomosOrlando has designed and implemented a comprehensive model that addresses the needs and builds on the strengths of the affected community.

Proyecto Somos Orlando (PSO) provides wraparound culturally competent services and educational programs, all under one roof, in the heart of the South Orlando Hispanic community. Proyecto has created a services hub and a safe, inclusive haven where individuals feel protected and cared for. All persons and families affected by the Pulse tragedy will be served at no cost.

The program comprises :

• Individualized assessments and plans for case management
• Comprehensive case management
• Assistance with basic human needs (food, clothing, housing, and transportation assistance)
• Help with navigating resources and advocacy
• Onsite mental health services for all, regardless of insurance coverage
• Crisis counseling
• Individual and family therapy, home visits, support groups, art therapy
• Immigrant advocacy and legal services
• Community education on gender identity, sexuality, homophobia, PTSD, etc.
• Partnerships with fellow Latinx LGBTQ community agencies, allies, and leaders
• Support of Latinx LGBTQ community organizing and capacity building

PSO has hired three full-time staff members, all bilingual/bicultural and with extensive LGBTQ competence to provide services and support. They are working with pro bono attorneys, including the Orange County Bar Association, and contracting licensed mental health professionals to provide services at no cost. PSO will continue partnering with local LGBTQ advocates and providers to cross-train one another and provide community education programs.

An integral goal is to provide services and educational programs that are accessible to the community and help reduce transportation barriers. Proyecto Somos Orlando is housed in South Orlando at 6900 S. Orange Blossom Trail, Suite 200, near the Florida Mall. The 6,100-square-foot office offers space for support groups, individual counseling, and community education.

Some of the program’s accomplishments are:

• HF awarded Hispanic Family Counseling a grant of $10,000 for crisis intervention and support services provided to more than 300 victim/survivors and loved ones during the first month after the tragedy.
• Bilingual, weekly, art-based support groups were launched and continued for eight weeks, led by our case manager, Stephanie Pineiro, MSW.
• PSO is partnering with Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) to provide English classes (six hours a week) at no cost.
• The GLBT Alliance for Youth and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health recently conducted a three-hour training for 15 Hispanic family-counseling providers and support staff on building LGBTQ cultural competence.
• PSO hosts and serves as a fiscal sponsor to QLatinx, a group of Hispanic LGBTQ young adults founded within the first month after the tragedy.

Funding
SomosOrlando is financially supported by the Hispanic Federation (HF), a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency founded in 1991. Its mission is to empower the Hispanic community and strengthen 100 Latino nonprofits serving an estimated 2 million Hispanics nationwide. HF works on national and local issues affecting Latino and Latinx individuals, including antihomophobia initiatives, HIV/AIDS, economic empowerment, hunger relief, immigrant integration, nonprofit capacity-building, college access, and success and civic engagement. HF has a budget of more than $7 million and manages $2 million in grants to Hispanic-led community-based organizations annually. HF has more than two decades of experience helping Latino individuals, families, and whole communities overcome natural disasters and mass trauma. It was funded by the New York Community Trust after the 9/11 attacks and Flight 587 disaster to provide immediate and long-term outreach, case management, and referral services, ultimately assisting thousands of Spanish-dominant individuals and undocumented immigrants. HF has also raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the victims of natural disasters, including hurricanes, tropical storms, and earthquakes.

In the days following the tragedy, we launched the Somos Orlando Fund campaign, managed by Hispanic Federation, at the request of the Hispanic community. In addition to donations made online, we have submitted proposals to foundations and corporations that are awaiting responses. Proyecto Somos Orlando also has an exciting partnership with Jennifer Lopez and Lin-Manuel Miranda, who released a song dedicated to Orlando survivors, “Love Makes the World Go Round.” All proceeds from the first three months’ digital sales of the song will go to the project. We hope the combination of these efforts will allow us to be able to provide vital services in the aftermath and years to come.

Our current goal is to raise $1 million to secure our center’s operations for at least two years. The purpose is to secure funding for the short- and long-term social services, mental health, legal, and educational needs of the community. While the One Orlando Fund (composed of Equality Florida, One Orlando, and the LGBT Center’s funds)—now more than $20 million—will be distributed directly to families as victim compensation, we are complementing these efforts by providing the much-needed long-term services at our new center.

Current Needs
To date, the Hispanic Federation has invested more than $200,000 to secure a 6,100-square-foot space, furnish and equip it for operations, and hire three full-time staff members dedicated to the project.

Survivors and all those affected now have a safe and inclusive space they can call home where they will be received by bilingual LGBTQ-competent staff with experience in service provision and advocacy. We currently have 30 active cases with a multitude of needs that include food; housing; job readiness, including English classes; assistance with National Compassion Fund applications; and work opportunities. Many will be eligible for victim compensation. We are seeking support for the following:

• Food and gas cards ($25 and $50 cards)
• Donations to build a small food pantry at the center for emergencies
• Donations to build a cash assistance fund for housing and utilities (goal is $10,000)
• Grants to secure long-term mental health services for the uninsured, undocumented survivors, and others affected and in need.

Diocese Assistance Update
The final amount of money donated by the Episcopal Diocese of Central Florida to Somos Orlando was $9,270.74. This is the sum of many smaller contributions from our parishes and from people from our Central Florida community as well as from communities all over the U.S. Thank you, everyone, for your support in these efforts.

For any questions regarding the Proyecto Somos Orlando program, please contact Zoe Colon, MPA; Director of Florida & Southeast Operations, Hispanic Federation; at (407) 385-9678 or zcolon@hispanicfederation.org. Donations can be made online at www.SomosOrlando.info. To refer community members to bilingual, culturally competent services, free of cost, please have them call the center at (407) 270-0597.