Bright Beginnings Program Receives $25,000 Grant from The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven

Yale’s Bright Beginnings program has received a $25,000 grant from The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven to help maintain the program and to replicate its success throughout the Greater New Haven community.

The grant was funded through the Foundation’s Anne Hope Bennett and Ruth A. Meier Funds.

Founded in 1994 by the Friends of Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital, Bright Beginnings uses a unique volunteer-based approach to provide impoverished young mothers with a continuing stream of parenting training and support from the second trimester of pregnancy up to the baby’s first birthday. Young mothers are referred to Bright Beginnings by the Women’s Center at Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Bright Beginnings will use the funds to enhance the current program and to develop a manual on how to replicate the program in the community. They will also provide services for between 40 and 50 families within the next year, offer motherr’ support groups, “developmental funshops” and produce five newsletters.

“We are grateful for the generous support of The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven and are excited about the future of Bright Beginnings,” said Janet Weiswasser, director of community affairs and program development in the department of pediatrics at Yale.

The goals of the Bright Beginnings Program are to assist and encourage participants to make timely and appropriate use of the medical system, including prenatal and postpartum care, well-baby visits and the emergency department; develop competent parenting skills and knowledge of child growth and development; and utilize community resources to address other needs.

Volunteers for Bright Beginnings are recruited through community organizations and pre-screened by the Volunteer Office of Yale-New Haven Hospital. They attend eight hours of classes at the Mentor Training Institute on topics such as pregnancy, child safety, home visitation, pediatric care, children’s health issues, community resources, working with families and other topics.

Since 1928, donors to The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven have built the community’s endowment to its current value of approximately $200 million. In 2002, the Board of Director’s distributed over $10 million from 500 different named endowments supporting grants in the areas of health, education and youth, community and economic development, arts and culture and other vital areas.