The BBF Regional Council hosted a region-wide Infant/Toddler Drive in June, with participation from over 12 locations across the region. Each donation site was set up to collect donations to help support the Parent Child Center, Family Birthing Center and Community Action, offering concrete supports for families who needed clothing, infant supplies, and various food items. The council was ecstatic to have nearly 300 items donated, all of which were distributed to the above sites. This collective impact work continues to be a highlight for the council and will continue to support the council’s Action Plan goals of offering needed resources in our communities.
The Franklin/Grand Isle Children’s Integrated Services programs have been working tirelessly over the last few months to support the region’s goal to integrate and support play as a highlighted, effective tool for children and families throughout service delivery. From the Parent Child Center, Franklin County Home Health Agency, and the Vermont Department of Health, CIS providers are building a play toolkit to be distributed amongst home visitors, early childhood providers and families so that play can continue to be at the foundation of healthy development and overall wellness among children and family structures. While this goal will be worked on over the course of the next several months, the work this group has already done has been nothing short of fantastic!
Franklin/Grand Isle Counties are thrilled to have a new DULCE Family Specialist on the Parent Child Center’s Early Childhood Support team! Danielle Patrick will support and play an active role within the region’s HEART program, supporting the mental health needs of prenatal and post-partum moms. Danielle will be directly embedded in the Timber Lane Pediatrics office, located in Milton, VT. This is such an exciting new partnership for the entire region and we are all thrilled to welcome Danielle to the region’s growing support network for our region’s families and to support her work.
The BBF Regional Council continues to utilize and explore the importance and availability of concrete supports for children and families throughout the region. During one of the council’s brainstorming sessions, it was brought to the council’s attention that the winter months often lead to children coming to school with winter clothes/boots that don’t fit and, in some cases, no winter gear all together. The council decided to take some action and will be hosting a winter clothing drive throughout the month of October, supported by some of our local schools, to ensure that winter gear can be accessed before and during the winter months. Be on the lookout for our winter clothing drive flyer on our region’s BBF website!
For the past several months, the BBF council has been planning for and exploring ways to incorporate developmental screenings in community events in the region, a charge lead by our partners at Help Me Grow. The council was thrilled to have the support of the local Parent Child Center, offering the opportunity to host a BBF table where the region’s Early Intervention team offered to support screenings during the region’s annual Kids’ Fest. Developmental Educators supported screenings of several children, offered developmental education, referred children to various early childhood programs when appropriate, and input screening results in the Universal Developmental Screening Registry. For the region’s first developmental screening event, this was a huge, collective impact success for our children and families.