We are pleased to announce that Family ACCESS is one of the 100 local non-profits to receive grants of $100,000 each through the Cummings Foundation’s “$100k for 100” program. The Newton-based organization was chosen from a total of 479 applicants during a very competitive review process. Family ACCESS empowers and strengthens families and the community by providing programs that nurture child development, promote effective parenting skills and supports working parents. Our name reminds us of the doors that open, and the rich journeys that result, when children and families have access to the very best education-based resources and programs.

“We are incredibly proud that our hard-working teachers and educated staff have earned such a wonderful recognition of their hard work and determination to help all children succeed. We are going to use this money to strengthen our programs even further,” says Jon Firger, Executive Director of Family ACCESS, “We plan to use this money to enhance and develop our child and family programs throughout Newton, Waltham and surrounding communities.”

The $100k for 100 program supports non-profits that are not only based in but primarily serve Middlesex, Essex and Suffolk counties. This year, the program is benefitting 41 different cities and towns within the Commonwealth.

Through this place-based initiative, Cummings Foundation aims to give back in the area where it owns commercial buildings, all of which are managed, at no cost to the Foundation, by its affiliate Cummings Properties. Founded in 1970 by Bill Cummings of Winchester, the Woburn-based commercial real estate firm lease and managers more than 10 million square feet of space. The majority of which exclusively benefits the foundation.

“We admire and very much appreciate the important work that non-profits like Family ACCESS are doing in the local communities where our colleagues and clients live and work,” said Joel Swets, Cummings Foundation’s executive director. “We are delighted to support their efforts.”

This year’s diverse group of grant recipients represents a wide variety of causes of causes, including education, homelessness prevention, elder services, healthcare, and food insecurity. Most of the grants will be paid over two to five years.

The complete list of 100 grant winners is available at www.cummingsfoundation.org.

Newton, MA – To mark 25 years of teaching Newton children to be “Safe, Strong and Free,” CAP Child Assault Prevention program held its third annual Party for a Purpose on Saturday, March 19, 2016. Hosted by CAP volunteers Dan and Suzanne Demeo, the party was attended by 74 guests from the Newton community for dinner and dancing at The Social Restaurant.

Commendations for service were awarded to CAP by the office of Rep. Kay Khan and the Massachusetts House of Representatives and by the office of Mayor Setti Warren and the City of Newton.

The celebratory event and auction was attended by CAP Director Gail Sommer and CAP volunteers Dan Demeo, Kim Freedman, Jessica Long, Judi MacKenzie, Mary Malloy, Katie Sawatzky, Zoe Stoesser, Marisa Tuncali, and Marcelle Watkin.

“We’re parents of three boys,” says Dan Demeo, CAP volunteer and Party for a Purpose host with wife his Suzanne. “I know I can’t always be with them when they go to school or to go to practice. So I am pretty passionate about the CAP lessons that teach all our children how to stay safe. Because CAP is independent of the schools, it needs our financial support to reach all the kids it does.”

Introduced in Newton in 1991, CAP is a violence prevention curriculum targeting bullying and child assault. In 90 minute workshops delivered to Kindergarten, 2nd and 5th grade classrooms, CAP empowers elementary school children with the right to stand up for oneself, to enlist peers as allies, and to report unsafe situations to a trusted adult. CAP approaches the question of assault within the framework of basic human rights: all children have the rights to be Safe, Strong and Free. This program is delivered annually to more than 3100 children in Newton, Brookline and Boston. For help approaching this conversation at home visit the CAP website at familyaccess.org for a link to the Adult Information Guide.

Family ACCESS thanks the corporate sponsors for the evening: Cambridge Savings Charitable Foundation, Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation, Staples Foundation, Luxury Mortgage Corporation, Demeo Realty Group and RE/MAX, Lieberman Law Office, P.C. and the Newton Elks.

Family ACCESS received a $5,000 grant from Foundation for MetroWest to support life-changing family counseling programs for low-income families and young pregnant or parenting teens and their children in Waltham. A team of skilled mental health clinicians provides a continuum of care that ranges from individual and family counseling, child therapy, home visiting, crisis intervention, case management, and advocacy. Foundation for MetroWest’s commitment stabilizes vulnerable families, prevents child neglect and abuse, and ensures young parents care for themselves as well as their children to reach their full potential.

“We work with parents who are challenged by domestic violence, past trauma and mental illness, all of which effects the development of their young children,” explains Jon Firger, MSW MBA, Executive Director of Family ACCESS. “Our program interventions are designed to specifically address the quality of parent support and early childhood social behavior in order to improve a child’s healthy development, readiness for school and their life chances. We are truly grateful for The Foundation’s life-changing support.”

The comprehensive Young Parent Support program for pregnant and parenting teens and young adults (age 13 – 23 years) is the core of Family ACCESS Counseling & Consultation Services. These services are designed to engage otherwise isolated young parents, increase the parents’ capacity to nurture their children and reduce the incidence of child abuse and neglect, as well as to increase the young parents’ financial and emotional self-sufficiency and improve their life-management skills and self-care.

Kathy has relied on Family ACCESS counseling to help her achieve her goals. “Since I got pregnant, Family ACCESS has helped me with finishing high school and now I’m in college. They helped me get quality child care and helped me learn to be a good mom.”

Bilingual and culturally competent counseling also focuses resources for Waltham’s large immigrant community from Central and South America whose trauma, isolation and mental health concerns make critical the need for parenting counseling and support.

About Family ACCESS

Family ACCESS is a community-based non-profit organization that empowers and strengthens families through a set of four integrated programs: The Family ACCESS Early Learning Center, Family ACCESS Early Literacy Services, Family ACCESS Counseling and Consultation Services, and CAP Child Assault Prevention. Our mission is to strengthen children, families, and the community by providing programs that nurture child development, promote effective parenting skills, and support working parents. We actively engage a racially, economically, and culturally diverse population, and partner with area schools, community organizations, and other nonprofit and public social service agencies to reach children in need.  For over 100 years, the organization has served thousands of families, regardless of their economic status, from Newton, Waltham and neighboring towns. To learn more, please visit www.familyaccess.org or call 617-969-5906.

About Foundation for MetroWest

Established in 1995, the Foundation for MetroWest is the only community foundation serving the 33 cities and towns in the region. We promote philanthropy in the region, help donors maximize the impact of their local giving, serve as a resource for local nonprofits and enhance the quality of life for all our residents. Since inception, the Foundation has granted $11.6 million to charitable organizations and currently stewards more than $15 million in charitable assets for current needs and future impact. To learn more, please visit www.foundationformetrowest.org or call 508-647-2260.