Mission
ACAC provides needed assistance to individuals and families to become empowered and self-sustaining.
Vision
ACAC is committed to providing resource referral assistance and guidance to stabilize both individuals and families who are undergoing hardship and/or crisis. We help close the gap between desperation and hope, providing a lifeline to people in need of help.
Goals
Our goal at Access Community Awareness Center (ACAC) is to advocate and assist our clients in order for them to achieve self-sufficiency and independence. Our Advocates do this through our robust network of Central Florida nonprofit partnerships and collaborators.
ACAC Advocates educate our clients about the referral process. Then we match them with the appropriate service, prequalify them with partnering organization to ensure the process flows seamlessly, help with filling out required paperwork, and arrange appointments, as needed. From food, clothing, housing, substance-abuse rehabilitation, and mental health counseling and therapy, to medical assistance, homelessness, and more, ACAC works with government agencies and offices, nonprofits organizations and foundations, for-profits companies and corporations, and faith-based organizations to ensure that our clients are getting the best help they need.
Our Beginnings
Back in the early 2000s, ACAC founders, a couple that suffered personal tragedies that resulted in drastic life changes for both, decided to use their experiences to transform the lives of others.
Through advocacy and moral support, they gathered the courage to make a conscious decision to change their lives. Their hard work and their will to survive not only turned their lives around but also inspired them to help others get their second chance. Since then, they dedicated their lives to guiding families in need to available resources, as they were guided during their own struggles.
In 2016, they founded ACAC with the vision of providing advocacy and referral assistance to individuals and families in need in Central Florida. Through comprehensive, wrap around services, the organization helps families surpass life challenges so that they can achieve wellness and security.
Transforming lives, one at a time!
Collaborative Partners
The list below is a small sample of the organizations and centers that ACAC has worked with over the past years. We are in the process of writing Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with each of these organizations and others in the Central Florida area.
Osceola County Drug Court (OSDC): Provides substance abuse support program.
CNS: Provides new clinical trial medications and substance abuse treatment for their path to rehabilitation.
Hope and Help Center: Provides HIV patient treatment and education…
Women’s Shelters: Help Now and Harbor House of Central Florida: Provides victims of domestic violence food, shelter, and safety.
Eagle Heart Ranch, Inc.: Provides Equine Therapy for PTSD, TBI, and severe mental health conditions for individuals (Veterans, active military, first responders, medical staff, etc.) and their families.
Shepard’s Hope and Grace Medical Center: Assists with free medical care such as sick visits, well visits and check-ups, vaccinations, health screenings for children, regular care for chronic illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure, lab services, and more.
Catholic Charities: Provides emergency utility assistance, food pantry and assistance for residency cards and work permits for immigrant individuals and families.
Mustard Seed: Provides furniture, clothing, and appliances.
Career Source: Provides employment assistance, including English classes and job seminars, career assessments, job searches, resume assistance, interview techniques, and more.
DCF and FEMA: Provided assistance to DCF and FEMA during Hurricanes Irma and Maria to 20,000 children and adults from Puerto Rico with food stamps, jobs, housing, and more.
Second Harvest and Other Food Banks: Food banks and pantries.
Salvation Army, Coalition for the Homeless, and Rescue Mission: Provides shelter and food.
Access Florida: Helps individuals and families purchase nutritional foods needed to maintain and promote good health.
Don’t Dis’ My Ability: Learning from loss, making a difference after substance abuse via adaptive sports and recreational activities.
AB Ayudando Familias: Will provide TCM services for individuals in gaining access to necessary care medical, behavioral, and social.
A Voice for a Child: A Voice for a Child Organization is to recruit medical experts so they can facilitate medical services and much needed pediatric treatment for disadvantaged children living in Central Florida and abroad.
Health Plan Market: Health Plan Markets has been dedicated to helping our community understand plan options by educating and empowering beneficiaries about Medicare health options. Our Benefit Advisors are licensed health insurance agents who represent most major Medicare Advantage & Medicare Supplement Insurance plans giving our clients the freedom to compare and choose the best plan for their needs.
SDA Elderly Care: is a one stop-shop registry referral service for seniors with needs. We provide rapid rehousing for seniors, disabled and veterans.