Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and state Levels

The first Community of Practice I have chose to explore is from the Dayton, Ohio area. The Family Network, where families come together to be connected. The Family network was funded by national parenting expert Jody Johnston Pawel in March of 1987. This is a Dayton moms group for the entire Family! They make connections with other Dayton parents which creates memories with other children while exploring new friends around the world. This program is mainly for stay-at-home moms, but there are stat-at- home dads and working parents that join the group as well. Some of the things they do as a group is playgroups at a members home, play dates at a local park, Holiday parties, and monthly kid's craft. I am interested in this program, because there are so many single moms and dads that need support groups to get advice from each other. This would be a great opportunity for children to explore other friends within their community.

 The second Community of Practice is in the Newark, Ohio area. The Habitat For Humanity was funded in 1976 by Millard and Linda Fuller. This is a nonprofit, and Christian housing Ministry. They believe that every man, women, and children should have a nice, safe, and affordable place to live. The program is based on volunteer labor and donations. Families who need a safe environment can apply. The applicants chosen help to build their own house. The families have to put in so many hours to help build their own house. I would love to have the opportunity to work with these families to help boost their self-esteem, and to help them rebuild their lives as well.

The last Community of Practice is also from the Newark, Ohio area. The WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) program which is a short term program. The WIC program helps pregnant mothers to have nutritional foods. It also helps families that are in need of formula, cereal, and baby food for their infants. Then they supply other foods for children from one to five years old. People that are eligible are ones that are at the poverty level of 185%. WIC also provides supplemental foods, healthcare referrals, nutrition education, breastfeeding programs and many more for low income families. I would like to be able to mentor these families to make sure they are getting the foods they need for their children on a monthly basis. The main thing is to make sure they are meeting all the needs of their children. Some families need an extra boost in getting the things they need.


References:

http://daytonfamilynetwork.com/

http://www.habitat.org/

http://www.wicoffice.net/