Summary: On Saturday, November 7, 2026, the Figgers Foundation cut the ribbon on its new community center in front of hundreds of guests, many of them families, students and seniors the Foundation has served over the years. The celebration was a joyful one, with free food, games and entertainment for everyone who came. The purpose behind it is serious. The center exists to give students, families, seniors and people with disabilities a chance to grow and excel, no matter where they come from, through free classes and training that prepare them for industry recognized certifications, and through free legal and paralegal services. It is a new pillar of the Foundation's help in Florida, and its doors are now open.
A day of celebration
The ribbon cutting brought together supporters, partners, volunteers and community members alongside the people the Foundation exists for: individuals and families whose lives have been touched by its programs. Guests arrived early and filled the seats under the tents, parents with children, seniors with caregivers, young people who had come through the Foundation's youth programs, and neighbors who had heard about the opening and wanted to see it for themselves.
In the day's central remarks, the Foundation's Chairman spoke about the vision and mission behind the center, the importance of community involvement and compassion, and the responsibility that comes with opportunity. The ribbon, in the Foundation's words, represented the continuation of a mission rooted in service, generosity and a commitment to helping others.
After the ceremony, the grand opening became a community celebration. Free meals, recreational activities, games and live entertainment created a welcoming atmosphere where children, parents and neighbors could relax, connect and celebrate together. Families met the staff and volunteers behind programs they had only known by name, and the Foundation's team met the next group of people it will serve.
What the center is for
The Figgers Foundation built the community center around a single idea: where a person comes from should never decide how far that person can go. The center gives students, families, seniors and people with disabilities a place to learn, to be supported and to move forward, and it does so at no cost to them.
Three groups were at the heart of the opening, and they are at the heart of the center's design.
Students. Young people who want a skill they can use, whether they are still in high school, have just graduated or never finished, will find classes built for them, with hands on practice and instructors who expect them to succeed.
Families. Parents and grandparents can learn alongside their children, pick up a skill that leads to work, get help with a legal question that has been hanging over the household, or receive the practical help the Foundation has always offered, now in a place with a front door.
People with disabilities. Too many training programs leave people with disabilities out. The center welcomes them as participants with the same chance to grow, learn and excel as anyone else who walks in, and the Foundation will shape its classes so that everyone can take part.
Free classes and training
The Foundation announced that the center will offer the following courses completely free of charge to students, seniors and people with special needs. There is no tuition and no fee, consistent with the Foundation's practice across all of its education programs.
Course | What participants learn |
Artificial intelligence training | How to use AI tools for school, work and everyday tasks, with hands on practice and guidance on using them safely |
HVAC training and repair | The fundamentals of heating, ventilation and air conditioning service and repair, a trade in constant demand across Florida |
Computer repair skills | How to diagnose and fix common hardware and software problems, a practical skill for a job and for keeping a family's own computers working |
Each course is designed to take a participant from no experience to a usable skill. For a student, that can mean a first job. For a parent, a better one. For a senior, the confidence to keep up with a changing world. For a person with a disability, a door that is open rather than closed.
Certifications the training prepares participants to pursue
A skill matters most when an employer can verify it. Each course is built to prepare participants for the industry recognized certifications that hiring managers in Florida look for, beginning with entry level credentials and pointing toward the next step for those who want to keep going.
Computer repair skills. The course prepares participants for CompTIA Tech+, a basic overview of hardware, software and troubleshooting for beginners, and for CompTIA A+, the standard entry level credential for computer technician and help desk roles. Participants who continue can work toward CompTIA Network+, which validates skills in configuring and troubleshooting wired and wireless networks, and toward cloud fundamentals credentials such as AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner and Microsoft Azure Fundamentals. From there, the path leads to CompTIA Security+ and the other mid level credentials that open cybersecurity and network administration careers.
HVAC training and repair. The course prepares participants for EPA Section 608 certification, which federal law requires for anyone who handles refrigerants in air conditioning and refrigeration equipment, making it the first credential every Florida HVAC technician needs. Section 608 is offered in Type I, Type II, Type III and Universal levels, and the course also covers EPA Section 609 for vehicle air conditioning. Participants are prepared for the entry level industry credentials that employers recognize, including NATE Ready to Work, the Industry Competency Exam and ESCO Employment Ready certifications, along with OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 workplace safety certificates. With field experience, technicians can advance to NATE specialty certifications in air conditioning, heat pumps and gas heating and to professional level credentials.
Artificial intelligence training. The course begins with everyday workplace AI tools and productivity, the ground covered by Google AI Essentials, which is designed for beginners and takes about ten hours. Participants are then prepared for foundational credentials such as Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals and AWS Certified AI Practitioner, which cover machine learning basics, generative AI, safety and governance. Those who want to go further, including students headed toward software careers, can continue toward GitHub Foundations and machine learning coursework.
Certification exams are administered by the certifying organizations, and the Foundation's instructors will guide participants on scheduling and preparation. The classes themselves remain free.
Free legal and paralegal services
The center will also offer free legal and paralegal services. For many families, the barrier to stability is not a missing skill but an unanswered legal question: a form that has to be filed correctly, a document that needs to be understood before it is signed, a deadline from a landlord, an employer or an agency, or simply not knowing where to turn. Those questions are expensive to answer and easy to ignore until they become emergencies.
At the center, students, families, seniors and people with disabilities will be able to sit down with someone who can help them understand their situation, prepare the paperwork they need and find the right next step, at no cost. The service follows the same principle as the classes: the help itself, delivered in person, free of charge, to the people who would otherwise go without it.
A pillar of help
The Foundation's work across Florida has always been direct: a scholarship for a senior in high school, a grocery card for a family, a ramp for a neighbor who could not get through her own front door. What those programs could not offer on their own was a place. The community center changes that. It gives the Foundation a classroom where a course can run for weeks, a room where a family can sit down with someone who can help, and a doorway a person can walk through on an ordinary weekday without an appointment or an application.
That is why the Foundation describes the center as a pillar of its help. Free classes, free job training and free legal and paralegal services under one roof, built to be permanent and open to the people who need it most.
What it means for the community
A free course in a skilled trade or a technology that employers are hiring for can change the direction of a household. A center that welcomes people with disabilities as learners, not as exceptions, changes what a community expects of itself. And a grand opening attended by hundreds of the Foundation's own beneficiaries shows that help, delivered with respect, builds a community that shows up for one another.
Looking ahead
The Figgers Foundation will announce class schedules, registration details for the AI training, HVAC training and repair, and computer repair courses, and hours for the free legal and paralegal services on its website and social channels in the coming weeks. Students, families, seniors, people with disabilities and the caregivers who support them can register interest now by emailing Info@FiggersFoundation.org or calling 1-800-391-2803. Businesses, educators and community leaders who want to partner on the center's programs can learn more at figgersfoundation.org/CommunityPartners.