Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Miami Herald - November 18, 2005
Cindy Krischer Goodman, cgoodman@herald.com
Francois Leconte, 41, is married with three kids but he made the most of his single days.
As a bachelor, Leconte says he saved enough to form the social services agency that has become one of the most important for helping Haitians in Broward County.
Leconte, a Haitian journalist, fled Port-au-Prince at 25 to escape political strife. He initially landed in New York. But before long, he relocated and took a job with a Miami-Dade HIV/AIDS prevention program. Through his work there, Leconte discovered there was no AIDS outreach program for Haitians in Broward County.
"I drove around with AIDS prevention materials in the trunk of my car and went door to door distributing them in the community and churches," Leconte recalls. Three years later, his agency, Minority Development & Empowerment, received a grant from the Community Foundation of Broward County, giving it money to continue operating and to expand.
BEYOND AIDS
Today the agency has moved beyond AIDS prevention to provide the Haitian/Caribbean community with health-care services, education, counseling, pre-natal care, after-school care, job placement and economic development.
"We have had to educate the government on how to reach out to the Haitian community," Leconte said.
The $3 million agency operates from a building in east Fort Lauderdale, a section that Leconte calls "the Little Haiti of Broward County." This year, Leconte extended the agency's reach into Palm Beach County, opening an office in West Palm Beach. He believes the agency and its staff of 50 employees has helped more than 10,000 people in Broward alone. And, it hasn't even tallied the number it has helped in Belle Glade.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Wilma, Leconte says the Minority Development & Empowerment became a lifeline to the Haitian and Jamaican communities.
"We became like a sub-office of FEMA, giving ice water and food to the people in the community," Leconte says. "A lot of our clients didn't know where else to go. People were coming in here like crazy."
Leconte says he feels most rewarded when he sees a child who recently arrived from Haiti learning English and succeeding in school. He also feels pleased when he sees new arrivals from the Caribbean speaking out about a personal concern and getting results.
"That's when we know we have empowered them" Leconte says. "We are taking a group of people who are disenfranchised and trying to help them understand the system."
Gentry Vitale, the agency's chief financial officer, met Leconte nine years ago in a grant writing workshop when the agency was still a vision. Vitale says she was immediately impressed with his enthusiasm but knew how hard it was to get grants and wondered whether he would be successful. Five years later, her CPA firm sent her to his agency for an audit. Shortly after, she joined Leconte's team.
"I was amazed that he really lived his vision," Vitale said. "A lot of people come into our building and his door is open to anybody. Not only is he a leader but he gets one-on-one with clients and relates on that level, too."
HE'S HONORED
Earlier this year, JM Family Enterprises recognized Leconte as one of its 2005 African-American Achievers. Leconte also received the nation's highest honor for community health leadership -- the Robert Wood Johnson Health Leadership Program Award.
In addition to leading Minority Development & Empowerment, Leconte serves as vice chairman of the Broward County HIV Service Planning Council, and is a member of several other key community organizations, including the Broward County Refugee Task Force. Also, he sits on the board of Leadership Broward and recently was appointed to the College Reach Out Program advisory council.
"Francois Leconte has changed and improved the lives of people in the local Haitian and Caribbean communities," said Kim Bentley, JM Family's director of charitable giving. "He has put the needs of others before his own. He is an inspiration."
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HOW TO HELP
Contact Francois Leconte, Minority Development & Empowerment, 1703 N. Andrews Square, Fort Lauderdale, 954-315-4549.
051118
MH051010
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