|
|
|
|
May 6, 2008United Way helps Thrive in Five take root in MattapanBOSTON – In one of the first acts of its Thrive in Five partnership with the City of Boston, United Way of Massachusetts Bay & Merrimack Valley today announces a new investment of $300,000 to provide Mattapan families with additional support to help ensure their children enter school ready to learn. There are more children under five living in Mattapan than in nearly every other neighborhood in Boston. This first-time investment aims to answer the increased need for services in Mattapan by expanding five highly effective programs. The new early childhood grants are part of United Way’s larger Thrive in Five commitment to provide Boston families with the support they need to minimize risk factors that can impede children’s healthy development and to increase the likelihood that young children will enter school fully supported and ready to succeed. To this end, the United Way investment will enable the following programs to expand into Mattapan: Family Nurturing Center: Family Nurturing Center’s The Nurturing Program, Adult/ChildPlaygroups and Welcome Baby programs will provide increased opportunities for families with young children to get connected and learn about city resources. Boston Medical Center’s Healthy Steps : Healthy Steps will provide c ulturally-competent child development specialists who will work alongside pediatricians at BMC to increase the center’s capacity to work effectively with the diversity of families raising young children in Mattapan. Family Connections: A component of Children's Hospital’s Early Head Start Program, Family Connections works to engage parents, especially those who may be suffering from depression, so that they remain informed about the resources and support available to them. Thom Child and Family Services: Thom Child and Family services provides regular and universal developmental screenings for children in addition to services for children experiencing or at risk for developmental delays. The Child Witness to Violence Project: Boston Medical Center’s Child Witness to Violence Project helps young children and their families heal from the effects of community and family violence, and builds the capacity of local community agencies and child care providers to identify and respond to young children who have been affected by violence. The new funds were made possible by a new United Way investment strategy which was announced last spring. The strategy was created to drive the greatest possible impact in United Way’s focus areas – healthy childhood development, youth opportunities, sustainable employment and affordable housing– by tying the organization’s investments to specific goals and measurements. In addition to providing unrestricted operating support to its existing network of agencies, the first year of the plan shifted $1 million to invest in innovative organizations across its four impact areas that had not previously received United Way funding. These organizations cement United Way’s commitment to ensuring that all children have the support they need to succeed in school and life. About United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley A non-profit charitable organization, the United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley through more than 200 health and human service agencies helps serve the needs or more than 2 million people in 87 cities and towns. United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley is a nonprofit charitable organization that brings together people from business, government, education, healthcare, faith groups and the community. They work to improve the quality of life for our region’s children and families by uniting effective partners, wise investments, and committed volunteers to strategically tackle the most critical issues and create measurable differences in our neighborhoods.
|