Twelve young men, including students from The Immokalee Foundation’s Career Development program, were honored at the 2012 Heavy Equipment Mechanics graduation celebration. The event recognized the first graduating class of the HEM program at the Immokalee Technical Center.

With the support of founding partners, The Immokalee Foundation, The Caterpillar Foundation, Kelly Tractor, Fites Family Charitable Trust, Kelly Foundation Inc., Collier County School Board and Immokalee Technical Center, the HEM program was launched in the fall of 2010.

The program is a state-of-the-art curriculum designed to prepare graduates to enter a field currently in high demand throughout the United States and Latin America. The program includes instruction for diesel engine technician, diesel engine mechanic/technician helper, diesel drivetrain technician and more.

Read the full story.

With the help of The Immokalee Foundation, the Greater Immokalee Front Porch Youth Empowerment Academy (YEA) held its second annual conference this summer in Immokalee, giving five highly driven students the opportunity to develop their leadership skills, become better résumé writers, gain workplace experience, and generally grow on personal and professional levels. Above, the five students who participated in this year’s YEA pose for a picture with YEA leaders.

As part of the YEA experience, each student was asked to write an essay that answers the question: "What is your defintion of poverty and what would you do to change the way poverty looks in your community?" Click here to read the TIF student responses.

TIF student Alejandro Arreguin and TIF board member Louise Penta share a moment together this summer at Camp Joslin in Massachusetts — an experience Alejandro enjoyed thanks to TIF and our wonderful Fund A Dream™ donors.

Nine TIF students recently completed a five-week medical internship co-hosted by Collier Health Services and the Florida State University Immokalee Health Education Site. Here the students join with TIF and on-site staff to celebrate the end of a very successful experience.

Continue on for more highlights from the final day of the internship.

“You actually get to experience a new world," said Jesus Valezco, one of TIF's Take Stock in Children students. "It’s so different than what you see in Immokalee.”

Five of the eight students made their way to the nation's capital thanks to the generosity of donors who contributed to our Fund A Dream™ "auction" at the 2010 Charity Classic Celebration. This year's Fund A Dream™ — part of the 2011 Charity Classic Celebration at the Ritz-Carlton Naples Beach Resort on November 11 — will offer similar opportunities to help Immokalee's children experience the world.

“I’ve seen so many things on this trip," said Diana Avila-Pineda, a Take Stock in Children participant and Immokalee Readers tutor, as she stood outside the U.S. Capitol building. "It’s amazing.”

Continue on to see great photos from the D.C. experience.

Ever since Texas Roadhouse descended on Immokalee in late April with 1,200+ volunteers intent on giving the town a makeover and providing the needy with meals and support, we at TIF have been members of the Unofficial Texas Roadhouse Fan Club.

We first got to know the organization nearly a year ago now, when we began talking with the company about bringing its annual Humanitarian Day to Immokalee. Nearly six months later, the massive Texas Roadhouse crew arrived. They renovated the Immokalee High School athletic facility. They planted fruit trees. They made improvements to the Immokalee Friendship House building. They prepared and distributed nearly 10,000 boxes of nonperishable food. They sponsored a large mural depicting three children from Immokalee — a mural designed by student Josie Lopez and Jaime Hernandez, a teacher at iTECH — that now adorns a large outside wall of the Immokalee Housing and Family Services building.

During our College Tour 2011, TIF students made a stop at a Texas Roadhouse in Gainesville, Florida — and they took advantage of the occasion to unfurl a banner (pictured above) that shows how much they appreciate what Texas Roadhouse has done for Immokalee.

Joseph Zednik, an Immokalee Foundation board member and mentor, and Bonita Springs resident, has been named to chair the organization’s Charity Classic Celebration scheduled for Friday, Nov. 11, at The Ritz-Carlton, Naples.

Highlights of the evening include an extraordinary dinner, live and silent auctions featuring once-in-a-lifetime experiences, music, entertainment and dancing.

The event’s theme, Dream. Believe. Experience., celebrates the foundation’s mission to provide sustained educational opportunities that make aspirations come true for the youth of Immokalee. TIF's largest fundraiser raised a record-breaking $1.5 million in 2010 for the foundation’s educational programs.

“The programs funded by the Charity Classic Celebration help the kids of Immokalee obtain an education so they may have the opportunity to live the American dream,” said Zednik. “There is no better feeling than helping them grow, learn and succeed.”

Along with his position on The Immokalee Foundation board, Zednik is CEO of Prescient Ridge Fund, LLC, and is a former member of the Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago Board of Options, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Eurex and National Futures Association. Zednik received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Every Tuesday afternoon throughout the spring, the sound of tennis balls bouncing off the pavement would fill the air at the Immokalee Community Park.

This is because Jim and Sulbey Holt were in town.

The Holts, who live in the Naples community of Pelican Marsh, would make the hour-long drive to Immokalee every Tuesday afternoon to serve as coaches to 20 third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders at Immokalee’s Redlands Christian Migrant Association (RCMA). Along with an exceptional cast of additional volunteers from Pelican Marsh, the Holts would oversee the students’ commute to the park before diving into drills and exercises meant to provide the children with the skills and knowledge to play the game.

And Holts didn’t simply donate their time. At the end of each session, they treated the entire crew to some celebratory ice cream.

By bringing their passion for the game of tennis to Immokalee, the Holts have exposed these children to a new and rewarding experience that will translate not simply to better athletic skills, but to improved personal traits such as confidence, tenacity, teamwork, and the desire to learn new things. In other words, the Holts — like all of our incredible volunteers — are leaving significant and valuable imprints on the lives of Immokalee’s children.

Last month, Immokalee High School senior and TIF superstar, Andrea Guerrero, received an email from representatives of the Speakers Assembly of Southwest Florida. The letter said, in part, “With the concurrence of the other committee members, [we] are delighted to tell you that you have been awarded a $1,000 scholarship by the Speakers Assembly of Southwest Florida. Congratulations!”

This tremendous honor is yet another feather in Andrea’s very adorned cap. She is a top student and a model citizen.

What else makes Andrea so interesting? Read on to find out.