ChildStrive’s Commitment to Families
Parents and children are a vital part of all of our communities but they are also some of the most vulnerable to economic hardships, specifically if they have a child who experiences a disability or delay or if they have a newborn at home. When everyone got sent home in March no one could have anticipated that we would be reconfiguring how to do everything in our society but one thing that will always be a constant is ChildStrive’s commitment to families.
Typically, ChildStrive’s work takes place in the homes of just over 2,100 families annually. Early Intervention addresses the needs of children with disabilities or delays under 3 years old, Nurse-Family Partnership pairs a young first time mother with a nurse for 2 years, and Parents as Teachers works with parents, foster families and more to help connect to resources and be the best parent they can. You can learn more about each program here. ChildStrive also operates the Clever Sprouts ECEAP Preschool on Casino Road and has several Community Connectors located in Everett to help families access the services they need such as food, childcare and education.
Leaine doing a telehealth appointment // Courtesy of ChildStrive
Since March, ChildStrive staff has changed to providing services and school virtually. In addition to the usual speech therapy or parent coaching in a visit, home visitors have been able to provide grocery and basic needs deliveries to our most vulnerable clients.
“Knowing our organization has the capacity and chance to give food to our families is huge. There are no loopholes; when a family texts me asking for help, we can take care of the need. By working this way we are reducing barriers to food and accessing families who were already experiencing food insecurity. We don’t require any additional paperwork or anything from the clients and can simply ask “how are you, what do you need?” Many of our clients cannot go stand in lines at food banks for a variety of reasons. Being able to support young families’ basic needs right now is a gift to our whole society.” – Lisa, NFP Nurse
Patty making home deliveries // Courtesy of ChildStrive
This work can only continue to be successful with the support of our community that we are so grateful to be part of.
Want to get involved with ChildStrive? Registration is now open for The Great Adventure, an all-ages scavenger hunt-style game hosted through the app GooseChase September 18 to October 18. Missions include answering questions, completing activities and submitting photos or videos to earn points. Teams or individuals may join the game at any point and new missions will be released until the end of the game. This is going to be such a fun way to connect with each other and we hope lots of you will play!
Hayley is a born and raised Everettite, working at ChildStrive as a development and communications specialist. She enjoys going out to support a local cause as much as hiding at home to watch historical fiction. Go Cougs!