

ABOUT READY FOR LIFE
WHO WE ARE
RFL is a solution-based skill center supporting former foster care youth in homelessness prevention, education & employment, and lifeline support networks. RFL offers a unique Educational Learning Lab program; a full-time Mental Health Counselor, through a partnership with the Pinellas County Public Defender's Office; legal services provided through the Community Law Program, supported by the St. Petersburg Bar Association; Mentor Program; Youth Council; Mommy & Me; Keys to Independence; and more.
RFL is a family environment where young people find basic needs like food & meal kits; personal & hygiene supplies; caring support; and have access to laundry and shower facilities. We understand that until immediate basic needs are met, it is nearly impossible to contemplate the future...and RFL believes that all young people deserve the opportunity for a successful future.


OUR MISSION
Ready for Life provides the support, resources, and guidance former foster care youth need to successfully
transition to adulthood.

OUR VISION
Ready for Life assists young adults as they make the challenging transition from foster care to adulthood, preventing homelessness and helping them achieve their goals.

OUR MESSAGE
We are a family-like community that serves, inspires, and empowers young adults that have transitioned out of foster care to be Ready for Life.
MEET THE TEAM
BOARD MEMBERS
Our co-founders were approached about developing a nonprofit that would focus on assisting this population through this transition and thus Ready for Life was created.
David Fischer Gerry Hogan Bud Risser – Co-Founders
ADVISORY COUNCIL MEMBERS
Yvette Bean
Kenneth Beattie
Scott Clendening
Ben Coughanour
Bob Dillinger
Jennifer Dittman
Mary Pat McLain (chair)
Sally McLane
Crystal Moore
Bud Risser
Kathy Mize, CEO
Jamelle Connor
Provost, St. Petersburg College • Co-Chair RFL Advisory Council
Glenn Gomer
Attorney • Co-Chair RFL Advisory Council
Scott Clendening
Commercial Partners Realty • Immediate Past Chair RFL Advisory Council
Ken Beattie
RFL Chairman of the Board of Directors
Kathy Mize
CEO & One of the Founders of RFL
Michelle Walag
SVP Strategic Planning RFL • Staff Lead RFL Advisory Council
Erika Almond
Tournament Director Suncoast Ladies Classic
Mike Brown
Owner Trunk Bay Designs • President Santa’s Angels
Laura Connelly
GFWC Florida Federation of Women’s Clubs Second Vice President
Kay Dillinger
The Beth Dillinger Foundation
Terry Farner
Founder Suncoast Kingfish Classic
Anne Gottlieb
Owner & Founder of Profiles Placement Services in Baltimore, MD • Mentor RFL • Chair of the RFL Marketing & Communications Committee
Uday LeLe
Serial Entrepreneur
Kelly Mione
Marketing Professional, Retired
Fawn Moore
Chief Innovation Officer FSS
Margaret Martin
Re-Design Your Life Coach for Women 50’s, 60’s, 70’s • Martin & Associates
Jeni Mitchell
Retired, Former CEO of Caregivers Network • Founder of the Dr. David Zabrocki Dental Foundation and Program at RFL
Jenn Tran
Chief People & Culture Officer for the Tampa Bay Rays
Bill Weiner
Chief People & Community Officer for the Tampa Bay Rays
Amanda VanLaningham
Vice President Quality Services FSS