Concrete Supports in Times of Need
It is impossible to do your best parenting when you are worried about housing, food, healthcare, transportation, or safety. The Family Room helps families bridge this gap.
A scene from our Building Strong Families Clinic, a partnership with the UVM Medical Center that focuses on checkups, preventative healthcare, and monitoring milestones for children in immigrant families who are patients of the UVMMC Children's Primary Care Practice. After well child visits, parents come together for group teaching about child development, safety, and family wellness. This demonstrates what it looks like for families to receive innovative, family-centered and culturally responsive concrete supports at the Family Room. Click here to read more.
Special Thanks to...
We want to send appreciation to our regular food collaborators including Feeding Chittenden and the Vermont Food Bank.
We also want to thank our Onion River Coop and United Way volunteers.
This month, we said goodbye to our Albert Schweitzer fellow Jacob Weiss who had been an amazing asset to Dads' Night. He created a plan, training and focus groups to get our Dad's Mentoring Dad's program up and running. Thank you Jacob!
Announcements
Turning Point is facilitating a playgroup at the Family Room for new parents in recovery, called "Toying Around". This drop in playgroup is Fridays from 11:30-1:00.
We've recently welcomed a group of 15 volunteer interns from a University of Vermont Social Work service learning course. Thank you UVM for this special, reciprocal collaboration.
This year, Family Room staff is attending the New England Fathering Conference, happening March 17-20th, where director Josh Miller and our Fatherhood program coordinator Keegan Albaugh will be facilitating workshops. Family Play is closed on Thursday March 19th.
Family Room Wish Lists
Boom Box with CD player for infant room / preschool
Dress up clothes in good condition (no registered characters please).
Family Play kitchen helper on Thursdays from 9-1 including food prep, dishes, and light cleaning
Someone interested in helping serve lunch, clean up during arts and crafts activities that happen during program, and connect and play with our children and families on Tuesday or Thursday mornings.
Food is just one less thing people have to worry about when they come to the Family Room.
How the Family Room Provides Concrete Support in Times of Need:
As a parent child center of Vermont the family room provides 8 core services. One of these services is to provide concrete supports. Some of these are things are basic needs that all people and families require; like diapers, gas cards for transportation, help with a bill before services are terminated, or food to bring home when a family is struggling. But these supports also include resources and services like explaining how the childcare system works in Vermont and getting children enrolled, making sure family members have transportation to healthcare appointments, creating spaces for people to see mental-health providers in our setting, or caring for a child when a parent is in the hospital unexpectedly with no one else to watch them. We provide support and safety for people needing help with domestic violence, host playgroups for new parents in recovery, and partner with a number of vital organizations as a way to build a safety net for all of our families.
As suggested by the Strengthening Families protective factors framework, "access to concrete support and services... address a family's needs and help minimize stress caused by challenges". Family Room does this by providing facilitating the following:
Understanding one's rights in accessing eligible services - hosting workshops with interpreters in multiple languages, facilitated by our staff or community partners such as "Fair housing" (Vermont Legal Aid) or "advocating for your child in school and medical settings" (Vermont Family Network), and providing childcare during the sessions to increase accessibility.
Gaining knowledge of relevant services - Here is a place to connect with staff, community partners, and other families about relevant issues and concerns. Within this community, parents can tease out which services are right for their particular issue in a comfortable, child-friendly setting.
Navigating through service systems - By providing spaces for families and children, service systems are easily navigated because we make space for providers to work here with our families. Not only that, but the Family Room as developed relationships with many providers in the area so we can make referrals with warm handoffs so that people understand exactly what a service system will entail.
Seeking help when needed - With relationships at the heart of our approach to working with families, we aim to build trust. Families know that when they need help, they can come ask one of many staff members for help and get answers or connections right away.
Having financial security to cover basic needs and unexpected costs - with special funding for crisis scenarios, the Family Room is able to make sure that parents keep their heads above the water when unexpected costs or needs arise.
Thank you for your ongoing support, and be well!
- Jackie Reno Family Room Children’s Program Coordinator and Preschool Teaching Director
"This is a wonderful program and facility. Staffed by knowledgable and genuinely loving people and attended by families of all sizes and backgrounds. Support, community building, education, and play. The family room is truly wonderful!" - Family Room Parent
References 1. Center for the Study of Social Policy. 2015. Core Meanings of the Strengthening Families Protective Factors. Accessed from https://cssp.org/resource/core-meanings-of-the-strengthening-families-protective-factors/ on Feb 5, 2020.
