On April 10, Jack & Jill Center hosted a cocktail reception to honor its Fran Payne Society members. The intimate event was held at the home of Susan and Russell Cameron.
During the event, Jennifer and Derrick Gillis, parents at Jack & Jill Center, shared heartfelt reflections on the profound impact the organization has had on their family. CEO Heather Siskind, accompanied by Fran Payne Society members and Jack & Jill Board representatives Ann Payne and Susan Cameron, underscored the significance of the society’s mission.
Jack & Jill Center supports children of high-need working families through quality early childhood education, elementary education and family strengthening programs to ensure every child and family has the tools they need to be successful.
Members of the Fran Payne Society pledge their support of $1,500–$10,000 to an annual giving campaign for a minimum of three years to ensure every Jack & Jill Center family has the resources needed to succeed. Fran Payne Society members include some of the community’s most celebrated leaders. Since its inception in 2004, over $2.5 million has been raised through the gracious support of the Fran Payne Society. With a faithful three-year term membership, members secure a foundation of exceptional care through the Jack & Jill Center by giving the gift of early childhood and elementary education combined with family and health programs that promote Fran’s own philosophy, “We give a hand-up, not a hand out.”
The giving society is named in honor of Frances “Fran” T. Payne in recognition of her four decades of continuing service to the Jack & Jill Center. In 1969, Fran Payne became the Executive Director of the Jack & Jill Center and ushered in a new and deeper level of care by enriching children’s lives through education as well as strengthening the futures of high-need working families. Fran saw that changing a child’s life required wrap-around services such as parent enrichment courses, case management, a food and clothing pantry, a job resources room, a Helping Hands Emergency fund and more.
