Naples Children Foundation awards $600,000 grant to Legal Aid Service of Collier County
Legal Aid Service of Collier County has received a $600,000 grant from the Naples Children Foundation, founders of the Naples Winter Wine Festival, to continue providing free civil legal services to at-risk children across Collier County.
The grant supports Legal Aid for Collier Kids, a program that provides free legal representation and advocacy to children facing some of the most difficult circumstances in the community. The award covers the 2026-2027 grant term and is expected to serve 500 children.
The Naples Children Foundation has funded the project since 2012, when its initial investment allowed Legal Aid to launch Legal Aid for Collier Kids. More than 4,500 at-risk children have been served through the project since 2013. During the most recently completed grant term, the program served 748 children.
"The Naples Children Foundation has stood behind Collier County's most vulnerable children for more than a decade, and this grant allows our attorneys to keep showing up for them in courtrooms, classrooms and IEP meetings,” said Carol O’Callaghan, Esq., regional deputy executive director of Legal Aid Service of Collier County. “For many of these children, a Legal Aid attorney is the only advocate in the room whose sole job is to protect their interests."
Legal Aid is the only provider of free legal services to at-risk children in Collier County in the areas of dependency, family law, kinship care, guardian advocacy, Marsy's Law and education law. It is also the largest free service provider to victims in domestic violence court.
To learn more about Legal Aid Service of Collier County, visit CollierLegalAid.org or call 239-775-4555.
About Legal Aid Service of Collier County
Legal Aid Service of Collier County is a 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to provide high quality, free legal advice, representation and education to the residents of Collier County, according to need, to encourage self-sufficiency and improve the quality of life for the entire community. Legal Aid annually assists more than 2,300 Collier County residents in need with free civil legal services. The vulnerable populations it serves include domestic violence survivors, children who have been abused, neglected, or abandoned, seniors, veterans, disabled individuals, children with special educational needs, human trafficking victims, at risk immigrants, micro-enterprises and those seeking to start a small business, families facing eviction or foreclosure, struggling working families facing debts and credit or collection matters, victims of crimes and those seeking benefits to meet basic needs. To learn more visit CollierLegalAid.org.
About Naples Children Foundation
The Naples Children Foundation, the founding organization of the Naples Winter Wine Festival, creates transformational change and improves educational, emotional and health outcomes for vulnerable children in Collier County. Through its annual grants and strategic initiatives, NCF has impacted nearly 90 of the most effective nonprofits in the local community, providing 420,000 children with the services and resources they need to succeed. Through bold investments, collaborative partnerships, and data-driven solutions, NCF supports programs that ensure every child can thrive. NCF's unique approach, which bridges public and private resources, has become a blueprint for how to transform a community – one issue at a time.