Providing wraparound support to families
By Rachel Kelly
The Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center (MCFHC) is a local nonprofit whose mission it is to educate, empower and uplift our children, youth and community to increase access to opportunity. “Having access to mental health resources, family support, therapy support, etc., MCFHC has endless resources for almost everyone in my family. Knowing I have that support at the tip of my fingers has been the biggest blessing. For myself, I have been battling so much to the point that I literally lost myself, forgot who I was, in a fog most days. Once I felt comfortable talking about some things and learned to listen and learn about so many great things MCFHC has, it was a bit easier to come forth and accept the help that is there,” shares one parent who has a school-age child and toddler who attend MCFHC.
This is a mission that uplifts us all by strengthening our most vulnerable community members and families to thrive. The Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center does this by providing a full set of wraparound services to our community.
Wraparound services are divided into three different, but intertwined, approaches: childcare, service, and resources. The first, childcare, provides after-school programs, with a focus on art, music and dance, with the aim to decrease disruptive behavior among students in school and on the bus. Also under the umbrella of childcare are early learning programs, which provide low-income families with programs that equip children for school readiness, and respite care for foster children.
MCFHC serves families in the foster system through five different classes and programs. They serve through the Engaging Fathers group, which helps fathers navigate the child welfare system, working with social workers, the courts and their children. There is the Family Time parent-child visitation program for families in the Child Welfare System, valuing the need for children and parents to have positive interactions. The Parents 4 Parents program is a mentorship program where parents who were previously involved in the child welfare system work with parents currently involved to help them navigate the system, with the goal being one of reunification. The Triple P (Positive Parenting Program) is a parenting program that offers targeted interventions for parents of children from 0 through 16. The last service that MCFHC offers is one of Safe Care, which is a program that works with families of children of 0 through 5 who are at risk for child neglect or abuse to teach interaction, health care and home safety skills.
MCFHC also provides resources to those struggling with homelessness. The Homeless Prevention Project prevents homelessness among families of color through peer intervention and personal goal setting. The Mom and Women’s Support Group provides curriculum and resources to moms having experienced domestic violence or are at risk for homelessness. There is a Recovery Home, which is a sober living transitional housing for women and their children, promoting permanent housing. MCFHC has also partnered with the Palmer Pathways Pre-Apprenticeship Program to build a Tiny Home Village — transitional tiny home living for families until stable permanent housing is found.
Through childcare, services and resources, the Multicultural Child and Family Hope Center supports children, women and men from all different walks experience wholeness, wellness, stability and permanent housing. Currently MCFHC is in the process of a capital campaign for the support of the Cora Whitley Family Center.
“Our waitlist for babies and young children to enroll in Early Learning is over a year long,” notes Roxy Magno, director of Outreach Services. “MCFHC wants to serve as many children and families as possible, and our new building will increase our capacity by over 100 slots. In addition to increasing childcare access, it will also provide jobs to people in our community passionate about Early Learning, Teaching, and Social Services.”
To show your support for our children and families, or to glean additional information, please visit MCFHC.org.