Family Reunification Day Celebration

Family Reunification Day
Thursday, June 30, 2016 2 p.m. - New Jersey Law Center
 One Constitution Square, New Brunswick, NJ

As part of the annual nationwide American Bar Association Family Reunification effort, Legal Services of New Jersey once again celebrated Family Reunification Day at the New Jersey Law Center in New Brunswick on Thursday, June 30, 2016

Each year we focus on one of the critical services and procedures necessary to make reunification possible. This year's focus was on the special challenges facing children whose biological parents have had their parental rights terminated, but who still have not been adopted, and examined the further steps that night be taken to foster their relationships with their biological parents.

LSNJ honored several successfully reunified families from Camden, Burlington, Gloucester, Essex, Middlesex, and Passaic counties, as well as seven Reunification Day heroes:

• Mary Funari, CASA Advocate, Essex
• Angela Watson-Bell, Parent’s Attorney, Burlington
• Israel Segarra, Esq., Office of Parental Representation, Northern Office
• Kimberly Graison, Esq., Office of Parental Representation, Middlesex
• Brian Saber, CASA Advocate, Essex
• Fidel Loverton, Counselor at Grace Abounds, Monmouth
• Lyndsey Slack, DCPP caseworker, Passaic

Principal Speakers Included:

• David B. Katz, Presiding Judge, Family Part, Essex County
• Brianna Shaw, Youth Advisory Board Ambassador at Rutgers University—Transitions for Youth
• Jeanette Vega, Editorial Assistant and Parent Leader at RISE Magazine

The Peter N. Fiorentino, Jr., Esq., Memorial Scholarship was presented to Anna, an aging-out youth from Ocean County, who is attending Montclair State University in the fall of 2016.

Nurturing and Rebuilding Birth Family Ties

This video, produced by Legal Services of New Jersey and presented at the 2016 Family Reunification Day celebration, looks at the special challenges facing children whose biological parents have had their parental rights terminated, but who still have not been adopted, and examines the further steps that night be taken to foster their relationships with their biological parents.

2016 Family Reunification Day Videos

• Highlight Reel—2016
• Featured Video: Nurturing and Rebuilding Family Ties
• Keynote Speech: David B. Katz, Presiding Judge, Family Part, Essex County
• Youth Perspective: Brianna Shaw, Youth Advisory Board Ambassador at Rutgers University—Transitions for Youth
• Parent Perspective: Jeanette Vega, Editorial Assistant and Parent Leader at RISE Magazine

Previous Family Reunification Day Videos

• Home - Housing's Critical Role in Child Welfare (2015)
• Poverty, Addiction, and Meeting Family Needs (2014)
• Visitation: An Indispensable Tool for Reunification (2013)

Keynote Speeches from Prior Years

• Lisa von Pier, Assistant Commissioner of the New Jersey Division of Child Protection and Permanency (2015)
• The Honorable Julio L. Mendez (2014)
• The Honorable Thomas H. Dilts (2012)
• The Honorable Sallyanne Floria (2011)
• The Honorable Glen A. Grant (2010)

For information on National Family Reunification Month:

• National Council of Juvenile and Family Courts
• ABA Center on Children and the Law