By Kay Phelan
Emerald Coast Children’s Advocacy (ECCAC) CEO Julie Porterfield was recently surprised with a note-worthy honor to recognize her years of loyal service. At an ECCAC Board of Directors meeting last month, President Janet Parker announced that as a result of Julie’s 23+ years of dedication, founding and running ECCAC, the Board unanimously approved that the Niceville Center will be re-named “Julie Sacco Porterfield Children’s Advocacy Center.’’
Julie’s response to the surprise Center naming announcement was, “I am still in awe… and incredibly humbled to be honored in such an “honoring” way. I give the glory to God. He certainly has given me the grace, wisdom, and discernment to do my very best to make lives better for children. You all have given me the incredible gift of leaving a legacy for my family, especially my son.”
By now, most everyone knows that over the summer, the Niceville Center experienced a fire and then significant water damage from the sprinkler system. Since that time, the entire building has been vacated and completely emptied so the Center can rebuild, restore and redecorate.
“When this project is completed in the near future, there will be an official dedication ceremony to not only honor Julie Porterfield with the Center’s new name, but also to recognize her for the extraordinary leadership she has consistently shown over the past 23 years,” said Janet.
As many know, ECCAC’s two centers don’t house children, but they are set up with a multidisciplinary team of child protection personnel, prosecutors, law enforcement, DCF, therapists, as well as ECCAC staff and volunteers to provide services at no cost to the children in a child-friendly environment. Though the Niceville Center is temporarily closed, ECCAC operations are not. The kids are still being served at temporary locations, as well as the Pierce Family Center in DeFuniak Springs. In ECCAC’s 23-year history, over 15,000 children have received more than 170,000 services at no cost.
For further information, visit www.eccac.org. If abuse is suspected, call the anonymous Florida Abuse Hotline at 1-800-96-ABUSE.
