FORT MYERS, Fla. - eTradeWire -- Better Together, a nonprofit dedicated to families and children, has added Jess Tharpe as chief operating officer for the organization.

Better Together, a privately funded, volunteer-driven nonprofit, builds strong families and communities by empowering parents and providing meaningful connections, work opportunities, mentoring and short-term care for children.

As outgoing assistant secretary of the Florida Office of Community Services, Tharpe served on the executive leadership team of the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF). Tharpe comes to Better Together with 10 years of experience in child and family services and 10 years of experience in business development, operations, and administration.

At the Department of Children and Families, Tharpe also served as the assistant secretary for child and family well-being, deputy assistant secretary for child welfare and director of innovation and project management in the department's Office of Economic Self-Sufficiency. In these roles, she led several initiatives including the launch of Family Navigation, Florida's Foster Information Center, Father First and the Office of Continuing Care.

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Prior to her work with DCF, she served in various leadership roles within the nonprofit industry, higher education and the private sector, where she led program development, contract and grant management, business development, operations, administration and continuous quality improvement.

Tharpe also served as Junior League of Tallahassee president. She currently lives in Tallahassee with her husband and two children and is active in her church.

"From watching Better Together's impact in the child welfare system grow year after year, to working alongside Megan and her team during times of crisis and emergency response, I'm incredibly blessed to join an organization that truly lives out its mission of empowering families through proactive programming and second chances," Tharpe said. "I'm proud to work alongside the team, our partners, and the many volunteers across the state in wrapping around families."

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Established in Southwest Florida in 2015, Better Together now serves six Florida regions, which span 48 counties. To date, the program has served more than 10,000 children, and 98% of children served through mentoring and hosting remain out of the state system. With job loss at the root of most family crises, the nonprofit has helped nearly 40,000 job seekers connect to work opportunities through church-based job fairs across 24 states.

To learn more about Better Together and its mission, visit BetterTogetherus.org.