Shelter for Elders Archives - Jacksonville Area Legal Aid, Inc.

Runners, walkers and bikers can support Jacksonville Area Legal Aid’s Shelter for Elders initiative through the Nov. 22-23 Freed to Run

Runners, walkers and bikers can support Jacksonville Area Legal Aid’s Shelter for Elders initiative through the Nov. 22-23 Freed to Run

Gunster Shareholder and endurance runner Mike Freed and Jacksonville Area Legal Aid – joined by several event directors from the Northeast Florida community – are gearing up for the Freed to Run Challenge Nov. 22-23 to benefit JALA’s Shelter for Elders endowment, which supports housing-related legal assistance for indigent seniors. “We are thrilled with the success of Freed To Run and can’t wait to continue to build on it,” Freed said. Individual runners, relay teams, walkers and bikers will raise funds for the endowment through peer-to-peer fundraising based on a challenge to complete as many half-mile laps around the Duval County Courthouse as they can in a period of either 12 or 24 hours. Other options are to run a 5k or to bike from the St. Johns County Courthouse to the Duval County Courthouse. Those businesses, organizations and individuals wanting to participate, donate to the endowment or lend their in-kind support to the event can contact the appropriate director:

Dennis Harrison2025-10-23T11:30:39-04:00October 23rd, 2025|Freed To Run, News, Shelter for Elders, Uncategorized|

Jacksonville Eviction Diversion Program

Jacksonville Eviction Diversion Program

The Jacksonville Eviction Diversion Program is a comprehensive, community-driven initiative aimed at preventing evictions and promoting housing stability across Duval County, Florida. This program was launched in early 2024 through a collaboration between the City of Jacksonville, United Way of Northeast Florida, the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court, Jacksonville Area Legal Aid (JALA), and The LJD Jewish Family & Community Services (JFCS). Together, these organizations offer resources for both tenants and landlords to address housing-related challenges, prevent eviction filings, and sustain long-term housing stability.

Dennis Harrison2025-07-02T11:41:33-04:00July 1st, 2025|Fair Housing, News, Shelter for Elders, Tangled Title, Veterans Services|

JALA helps client secure the benefits of home ownership through probate

JALA helps client secure the benefits of home ownership through probate

Following the death of her mother, “Kendall,” not her real name, needed help transferring the family home into her name. JALA Attorney Jessica Farmer successfully guided Kendall through the probate process to secure full ownership of her family home. Kendall had been living in the home but faced challenges with probate, the legal process required to officially claim ownership of inherited property. Fortunately, creditor concerns were not an issue, with more than two years having passed since her mother’s death. With several siblings, all of whom were on board for the probate process, the case required coordination with the family to obtain waivers, which took some time. After obtaining the deed and preparing the pleadings, Farmer filed the case and promptly requested court orders, which were granted. Kendall was thrilled to receive the orders for the title transfer. Among other benefits, gaining title to the home allowed her to claim her portion of the homestead exemption.

Dennis Harrison2025-01-27T14:10:57-05:00January 27th, 2025|Client Stories, Fair Housing, Family Law, Shelter for Elders, Tangled Title|

Saving A Home – The Power of JALA Teamwork

Saving A Home – The Power of JALA Teamwork

After years of caring for her grandmother, Shateal Redding Johnston inherited the Jacksonville home her grandmother had built in 1959 and lived in until she died at the age of 95. But soon Redding found herself at risk of losing the home to foreclosure because of fraud perpetrated by relatives. By the time the case came to Jacksonville Area Legal Aid, it took two attorneys and a housing counselor to unravel and rectify a range of issues to stop the foreclosure. “They took the time to listen, to understand, and to come up with a great plan to allow me to be able to save my grandmother’s home,” Redding said. Redding had taken over the guardianship of her grandmother, Susie Mae Foster, after family members stole Foster’s money and forged her name on a reverse mortgage on the home. The foreclosure was based upon this presumably illegally obtained Home Equity Conversion Mortgage. A little over a month before her foreclosure trial, Redding turned to JALA for help. “The Court knocked Ms. Redding’s defenses relating to the fraud right away,” said JALA Attorney Lynn Drysdale. “The Court determined she could not raise the forgery and lack of mental capacity. Her case looked hopeless and became even more and more hopeless as time went on.”

Dennis Harrison2024-12-19T12:58:27-05:00December 19th, 2024|Fair Housing, Shelter for Elders|

Lawyers, Judges, and Civic Leaders Rally for Jacksonville Seniors in 2024 Freed to Run Challenge

Lawyers, Judges, and Civic Leaders Rally for Jacksonville Seniors in 2024 Freed to Run Challenge

The 2024 Freed to Run Challenge November 23-24 benefiting Jacksonville Area Legal Aid’s Shelter for Elders initiative is drawing lawyers, judges, business leaders, and other civic-minded athletes to help fund an endowment for housing-related legal assistance for indigent seniors. The runners and walkers will complete half-mile laps around the Duval County Courthouse in a period of either 12 or 24 hours beginning November 23, or run a 5k on November 24, while the cyclists will bike from the St. Johns County Courthouse to the Duval County Courthouse November 24. All are gathering financial pledges for JALA.

Dennis Harrison2024-11-10T11:13:35-05:00November 10th, 2024|Freed To Run, News, Shelter for Elders|

November’s Freed to Run Challenge Offers Everyone the Chance to Support JALA’s Shelter for Elders Initiative

November’s Freed to Run Challenge Offers Everyone the Chance to Support JALA’s Shelter for Elders Initiative

Gunster Shareholder and marathoner Mike Freed and Jacksonville Area Legal Aid – joined by several event directors from the Northeast Florida community – are gearing up for the 2024 Freed to Run Challenge, a two-day event November 23-24 to benefit JALA’s Shelter for Elders endowment funding housing-related legal assistance for indigent seniors. Individual runners, relay teams, walkers, and bikers will raise funds for the endowment through peer-to-peer fundraising based on a challenge to complete half-mile laps around the Duval County Courthouse in a period of either 12 or 24 hours. Other options are to run a 5k or to bike from the St. Johns County Courthouse to the Duval County Courthouse. Those businesses, organizations and individuals wanting to participate, donate to the endowment, or lend their in-kind support to the event can contact the appropriate director - read more at The Florida Bar.

Dennis Harrison2024-07-23T11:19:56-04:00July 23rd, 2024|Freed To Run, News, Shelter for Elders|

Freed to Run gives $195,000 to Shelter for Elders

Freed to Run gives $195,000 to Shelter for Elders

The Freed to Run Challenge, a two-day running event that debuted Nov. 17-18 at the Duval County Courthouse, raised $195,000 to benefit the Shelter for Elders program at Jacksonville Area Legal Aid. The contribution supports an endowment that helps provide aid for older adults who have landlord/tenant and other housing-related legal issues but cannot afford to pay an attorney to represent them. The donation, the entry fees and sponsorships each year will be partially matched by the Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund through The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida. This year’s match is $25,000.

Dennis Harrison2024-02-23T08:36:22-05:00February 23rd, 2024|Freed To Run, News, Shelter for Elders|

Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund offers $25,000 challenge match for the Freed to Run Challenge supporting Jacksonville Area Legal Aid

Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund offers $25,000 challenge match for the Freed to Run Challenge supporting Jacksonville Area Legal Aid

Local philanthropist Delores Barr Weaver has offered a multi-year challenge grant to encourage donations to the Nov. 17-18 Freed to Run Challenge, the proceeds of which will benefit Jacksonville Area Legal Aid’s Shelter for Elders endowment to fund legal aid for area seniors facing housing instability. The Delores Barr Weaver Legacy Fund will match $25,000 in donations to the 2023 Freed to Run Challenge, provided the event raises at least $75,000 from other donors. In addition, over the following two years, the fund will match a gift of up to $25,000 from a single donor each year, dollar-for-dollar, provided that at least $50,000 can be raised from additional donors. The challenge grant is designed to help the Freed to Run Challenge meet its $100,000 fundraising goal each year. Weaver, former co-majority owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars, has a history of raising funds through running that goes back to 1990, when she offered a dollar-for-dollar matching challenge grant of up to $50,000 to a group of runners who would compete in the Boston Marathon. All the funds raised would go to the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research, which Weaver had established in 1987 at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in memory of her mother, Claudie Adams Barr, who died of breast cancer.

Dennis Harrison2024-01-04T11:07:33-05:00November 12th, 2023|Endowment, Freed To Run, News, Shelter for Elders, Uncategorized|