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Small world story:  In preparation for my successful 132 mile paddle down the Ohio River this June, I met a new friend in Kentucky.  She is a home visitor with the Healthy Families America program in which we also participate.   Families who struggle to make ends meet also often struggle with other factors that make it hard to raise children. Agencies all over the country are standing beside these parents and babies to help them do the very best they can...and we are among them. 
It was good for me to see a slice of the bigger picture.  It is a national focus on preventing child abuse and it is very important.  
Rural Kentucky or rural New Hampshire:  the need is everywhere. Thanks for being part of the solution by your support of and interest in Good Beginnings of Sullivan County.  Read on to find out more about how you can share news about our programs including our SHINE program.

Maggie Monroe-Cassel
Executive Director
October Fundraising Breakfast
A ndre Dubus III climbed to the level of a
New York Times  best-selling author.  His roots here humble.  Andre was raised in post-industrial Haverhill, MA.  His parents were divorced.  He lived with his mom and siblings in an apartment that they had to vacate for a few weeks each year when the landlord used it for his own family.  He spent a lot of time on the streets in a then struggling city.  He learned how to cope.  One way was to work out so he could beat up the kids who beat him up. He had another way to cope: writing. He rose to fame in the publishing of his book House of Sand and Fog .  Among other writings is his memoire of growing up. He will share some of his stories from  Townie   at a breakfast event on October 29th at The Common Man in Claremont.  His stories are a kin to the stories of the families we serve.   Click here to learn more about Andre. Click here for more information and to register for the event. 

SHINE Boot Camp Sessions

 

2-Day SHINE Boot Camp sessions are being offered EVERY Tuesday from 6:00pm to 9:00pm & Wednesday from 10:00am to 4:00pm in the air-conditioned conference room at Good Beginnings, 109 Pleasant Street, Claremont. Each free 2-Day session includes free snacks, dinner on Tuesday, and lunch on Wednesday.

 

SHINE (Sisters' Health Information Network Exchange) is a FREE program designed for young women ages 15 to 21.  It covers healthy relationships, consent, communications and life skills, education and career success, and comprehensive sexual health. Participants earn $100 for completing the program. Financial incentives are also available for referrals from any past participant, coach, school counselor, or teacher.
New Hampshire Statistics To Awaken Us

From the New Hampshire Kids County Data Book 2015:

 

"Too many children live in families with poverty-level incomes, less than $25,000 a year for a family of four -- two adults and two children. For children younger than 18 years of age, the poverty level is 11.1 percent. Twenty-eight percent of students (47,586) in grades 1 - 12 qualify for the federally subsidized lunch program, generally considered a proxy for poverty.  Although the poverty rates are highest in New Hampshire's northern county, the largest numbers of children living in poverty reside in the southern counties. Among those low-income families, 43.7 percent are single parent households with children less than 5 years old."

 

Poverty brings with it a vast number of other social concerns, especially related to raising children.  This is why Good Beginnings is here:  to give families necessary resources to find their own strengths to raise their children.
What Poverty Does to the Young Brain
"The brain's foundation, frame, and walls are built in the womb. As an embryo grows into a fetus, some of its dividing cells turn into neurons, arranging themselves into layers and forming the first synapses, the organ's electrical wiring. Four or five months into gestation, the brain's outermost layer, the cerebral cortex, begins to develop its characteristic wrinkles, which deepen further after birth..."

Click here to read more....
Building Adult Capabitilies to Improve Child Outcomes
View this 5-minute video for some insights into raising children.
Visit Second Beginnings, our gently used children's clothing store supporting our mission.  109 Pleasant St, Claremont, NH. Tues-Sat, 10-4.
So we hope that you have enjoyed receiving this enewsletter. Again, please help us out by passing it along to your friends who are also concerned about children and families.

Sincerely,

Maggie Monroe-Cassel 
(603) 542 1848