Our Mission
To support seriously ill children in Albany, New York's capital region during their time of need.
Who We Are
Albany County Correctional Facility staff and volunteers from our community who are committed to our mission and guided by our philosophy and the compassion for the plight of seriously ill children whose families are in financial and emotional turmoil. We are a 501(c)(3) Charitable Organization. legal documentation.
Eligibility
Our assistance is based on the critical medical need of a child up to 18 years of age, the financial inability of the caregiver to meet the needs of their child and resides in Albany, New York's capital region. We may cover necessary travel expenses to a distant hospital for treatment, equipment, medication and the like that a child requires that is not being paid for by other means. A completed application and authorization form must be submitted to us by the parents/ legal guardian of seriously ill child to help guide us in determining the level of our support needed.
Our Philosophy
Children are special gifts and we will do everything in our power to support them during their critical stage in life. We are driven by the belief that amazing things happen when people work together to spark the potential in individuals and communities. We feel that we are partners with our community in our mission and we couldn't do this without you!
Learning Of Seriously Ill Children
We attempt to monitor seriously ill children in our community by listening to members of our community and by watching media reports regarding local seriously ill children. If you learn of a seriously ill child in our community that may need our assistance, please contact us.
Our Seriously Ill Children
The children our foundation supports are on our website, please look it over and return often to see our future children. The families and our volunteers enjoy reading your notes on this website and our social media sites. Please also feel free to send us an email [email protected] or give us a call (518) 281-6845.
Fundraising
Please consider our foundation as part of your charitable giving.
We do two fundraisers per year:
1st) The Annual "Teed Off For Tot's" Golf Classic held the last Friday in June @ the Fairway's Of Halfmoon golf course in Mechanicville, NY is now being organized by the Albany County Sheriff's Union Local 775 (ACCF Correction and ID Officer's union) with half of the proceeds being generously donated to help ACCFCB's seriously ill children. The banquet follows golf @ ~2:30 pm at the golf course, for reservations call John @ 281-6845.
2nd) From mid October thru mid November annually is open enrollment for all Albany County Employees to pledge charitable donations from their paychecks for the following year. Albany County employees tax deductible donation is a substantial support of our children's foundation.
Birth Of Foundation After Loss
On October 4th, 1994 John & Donna Smith's 3 year old grandson, Dylan was attacked by 2 dogs in the back yard of a residence in Ravena, NY. Dylan's injuries were life threatening and after hours of surgery on that day at Albany Medical Center Hospital, surgeons told our family that he would probably not make it through the night. Dylan did pull through and was awaiting a double transplant surgery of Intestines & Liver to save his life. We set out to raise the $250,000 needed for Dylan's "experimental surgery" that could save his life yet was not medically covered by insurance. Dylan struggled to survive for 1 year and succumbed to his injuries after a gallant battle on October 13, 1995 before receiving the transplant.
Death of Dylan, Life's Darkest Chapter
After a few years of trying to "get a grip" with our loss, we decided to put this foundation together to help other families struggling with their seriously ill children. We took lessons that were learned and decided to put them to good use to help others who are now walking a mile in our shoes.
At the time of Dylan's accident, John Smith had been a Correction Officer at the Albany County Correctional Facility for about 8 years. Staff at the correctional facility were exceedingly generous and helped our family in so many ways and we are very grateful to them. It stood to reason that we would name this foundation after the good people of the correctional facility and in 2001 the ALBANY COUNTY CORRECTIONAL FACILITY FOR CHILDREN'S BENEFIT, Inc. (ACCFCB), was born in memory of Dylan.
ACCFCB Founder's Retirement From ACSO, ACCFCB Has New President
In June of 2016, after a 30 year career as a Correction Officer with the Albany County Sheriff's Office (ACSO) assigned to the Albany County Correctional Facility, John Smith retired and moved to South Carolina with his wife, Donna. As the founder and longtime President of the Albany County Correctional Facility for Children's Benefit, Inc. (www.accfcb.org), he proudly turned the day to day operations and the President's position over to our former 1st Vice President and dear friend, ACSO Captain, John Wojcik on February 1, 2016. John Smith remains as 1st Vice President and an active advisor to ACCFCB, plus maintains ACCFCB's website and public social media pages to assist in our ongoing mission.
ACCF for Children's Benefit, Inc., with the help of a wonderful Board of Director’s, many volunteers and a caring community, will continue to help families. Everyone involved in this great organization does it for their own good reasons- certainly not for the pay because we don't receive any. We are rewarded knowing that we are easing the burden for families of seriously ill children in desperate need!
Our little angel!
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