Meet the New Faces at FFCR!

A big welcome to the newest members of the FFCR team, Review Specialist Meliza Frias, Esq., Outreach Specialist Lamar Thomas and Review Specialist Yasmin Zakkout!

Meliza Frias Esq. joins FFCR as Review Specialist. Meliza most recently served for four years as Senior Child’s Best Interest Attorney with the Guardian Ad Litem Program where she earned the Executive Director Award in 2017. She is passionate about helping children achieve their goals and reach their full potential. Meliza graduated with honors from Florida International University Law. During her studies, she worked with children and families at FIU’s Family Law Clinic.

Lamar Thomas joins FFCR as Outreach Specialist and will be responsible for serving as a scribe during Initial Permanency Roundtables and ensuring the immediate distribution of the action plan. He will also be charged with pursuing family finding strategies, including searching for relatives in the Seneca Search database. Lamar has worked in the child welfare arena for three years as a Child Advocacy Manager at Miami’s Guardian Ad Litem Program where he both supervised volunteer guardians ad litem and was an advocate for a number of children in foster care. Lamar has been a member of the U.S. Army Reserves since 2014 with a special focus on tactics and strategy.

Yasmin Zakkout joins the FFCR team as Review Specialist with over five years of experience working in the child welfare system. She previously held the position of Court Liason at Children’s Home Society. Prior to this, she worked as Child Advocate Coordinator with the Guardian Ad Litem Program. Yasmin holds a Bachelors in Political Science and Sociology from Florida International University.