Our Mission
To improve the quality of life for kinship families residing in Forrest, Jones, Covington and Smith Counties in southern Mississippi, support elderly living at home and provide home safety items for elderly and disabled in Forrest County through the TRIAD program.
What we are about
For the past thirteen years PAFF has worked with families across the lifespan. Since its inception in 1999, PAFF has supported kinship families (grandparents and other relatives raising grandchildren) and now works with some 75 families in four counties in southern Mississippi (Covington, Forrest, Jones, and Smith). Services have been supported by monies from The National Family Caregiver Support Program administered through Area Agency on Aging of the Southern Mississippi Planning and Development District.
2011-present The Southern Mississippi Planning and Development District Area Agency on Aging has supported kinship caregivers age 55+ years living in Forrest, Jones, and Covington Counties.
2009- present Currently, PAFF is working with the Foundation for the MidSouth, the Intergenerational Center of Temple University in a Communities for All Ages National initiative, the Coca Cola and Jarden Foundations to address obesity and diabetes and build healthier communities.
2006-08 A post-Katrina Hurricane Recovery Grant from the AARP Foundation and a Building Community Resilience Grant through the Foundation for the MidSouth addressed recovery issues for elderly and kinship families affected by the storm, which, in our area of Petal and Hattiesburg were at least 90% of our program participants.
2005 Hurricane Katrina devastated the office but work continued off-site and the Annual Grandparents Celebration Picnic was held on schedule in October. Our offices were rebuilt by February of 2006 and a grant from the Foundation from the MidSouth helped replace our lost computer equipment. Much worked needed to be done post-Katrina.
Funding from the Rosalyn Carter Caregiver Institute and Johnson and Johnson in 2005 supported an intergenerational health and exercise program for grandparents and grandchildren in the RAPP program.
2002-04 Beginning with a Faith in Action grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (2002-04), homebound elderly received non-medical services through trained volunteers. This program continues with support from the Community Nursing Program at the University of Southern Mississippi.