Acumen Solutions to the Rescue

We are so impressed and pleased with the outcomes from our volunteer project with Acumen Solutions. Over two days and ten hours of physical labor, Acumen Solutions employees built a new shed, completed an outdoor walkway, and built a new cover for our sandbox. Each of these acts will improve the quality of service we are able to provide to low-income families.

The shed was a monstrous project, made all the more difficult by the most arcane, asinine set of directions ever written. In fact, one group had already tried to assemble the shed one year prior to this volunteer project. The shed sat for one year in ruins under a tarp on our playground, and would have remained there for all eternity had it not been for a few brave souls at Acumen Solutions. It required not only an ironclad determination to decipher the instructions, but also an extra trip to Home Depot and three more hours than had been originally been planned. The team that worked on the shed braved the longer work period, a fierce assault of mosquitoes, and a nearly sweltering day. In the end, they defeated my arch-nemesis. For the all the bad talk about the shed, it will really benefit the children at our Birchmere center. With the shed now assembled, we will be able to purchase more outdoor toys and equipment (such as hot wheels, easels, water tables and balls) to promote the healthy physical development of the young children in our care. Plus, playing outside is just plain fun! Before the shed, we were limited in the number of outdoor toys and equipment we could have because (1) we could not leave them outside for fear they would be stolen and (2) we did not have the space indoors to store them. So thanks to our volunteers we will now be able to provide even more outdoor activities for our children!

Our volunteers also built a new cover for our sandbox. Each year, we have to replace the sandbox cover as it becomes warped by the rain and sun over the course of the school year. When it becomes warped, it no longer keeps the rain and animals out of the sandbox. This year, our team of Acumen Solutions volunteers went above and beyond the call of duty in an effort to create a more sturdy cover for the sandbox. They also painted the cover with a protective seal to keep out the moisture. It is my hope that their added efforts will keep our sand dry and in good condition for the children for a longer period of time.

Finally, our volunteers completed an outdoor walkway that connects the path leading from the back of our facility to the front door. The families we serve all live within walking distance of our center, and many take this path to get their children to our front door. During rainy days, the uncompleted portion of this path became a pool of mud, making for a messy trip to and from our program. This meant our families got dirty and our classrooms got dirty as all that mud was tracked in from outside. It may seem like a small thing, but completing the walkway improves the quality of everyone's experience by creating a cleaner, more professional environment for our families and program staff members. Not having to constantly clean the floors or children's shoes and clothes means more time can be spent providing quality services.

Again, it was a tremendously successful volunteer project. We are all thrilled by the outcomes and so appreciative of the time and talents given by our team of Acumen Solutions volunteers.

With Sincere Gratitude,

Ryan and the CFNC family

Thanks for a Thankless Task

Every year we send out a holiday card to all of our supporters wishing them a joyous season from our staff and board members and the families who have benefited from their generosity throughout the year. Sending out over 2,000 hand addressed holiday cards is no small task. This year we were fortunate to have employees from Reed Technology, students from the Art Institute, and one member of Westminster Presbyterian Church volunteer their time to help us hand address, stamp and stuff the holiday cards. For anyone who ever participated in a large mailing, this kind of work has its own way of leaving you feeling a little drained at the end of the day. It is often a thankless act of generosity that goes unnoticed - but not this year. We are so thankful for the hours each of these groups gave to help us send out our holiday cards. Their hard work enabled program staff members to focus more of their time where it is needed most: at work with the 150+ children and families benefiting from our services.

Volunteer Spotlight: Katherine Milliner

We are finding that one of the main reasons why parents stop attending our ESL program is because they find the class too challenging or not advanced enough to meet their needs. To deal address this issue we have changed the structure of our ESL program from 4 days of classes per week (with 2 beginner classes and 1 intermediate class per day) to 3 days of classes and 2 days of small group tutoring per week. This allows us not only to offer 5 full days of literacy programming as opposed to 4, but also to meet our parents where they are at in terms of their literacy level. We are hopeful that these changes will help us increase our retention rate with parents by up to 50% so that more parents improve their literacy levels by year’s end than anticipated. We currently have 105 parents participating in our classes!

This change in the structure of our ESL/Family Literacy program depends upon talented volunteers to lead our small group tutoring sessions on Tuesday and Thursday. One woman who has been giving her time and talents each week to help us better serve our families literacy needs is Katherine Milliner (pictured above).

What brought you to volunteer at CFNC?

Katherine: I came here from Idaho. My husband is working with the President's Malaria Initiative for a couple of years. So here I was with time on my hands and looking for something useful to do. I went on the Internet, found your organization, and you welcomed me with open arms. I called and was invited to come in.

Education is my background, so this was a good fit for me. It was an amazing thing because I was able to step right in. In terms of you being open to receiving me into the fold and letting me help in a way that I could was lovely.

Tell me about your experience so far volunteering with our ESL program.

Katherine: It has been delightful...I was also taking Spanish classes, which was a really humbling experience, and that was one of the reasons I felt I need to do something to help those on the other side of this because I know how much I am struggling. I have support, and I have books, and I have everything at my disposal...I have also lived over seas so I know what it is like not to be able to communicate.

My experience has been I come here for an hour and a half on Thursdays to a room full of eager, enthusiastic, happy women, whose needs are met. They have deposited their children with you, and they are anxious to learn. Their camaraderie is great. Their reception of me has been phenomenal...We just have a good time.

Has there been any one moment so far that stands out in your mind?

Katherine: I think for me the most touching thing is if I am asking a woman to speak who doesn't even have a strong voice for herself in her native language, and she is brave enough to try and say the words in a foreign language. If we can create an atmosphere where she is willing to try it, it is a beautiful moment. And there are lots of those little beautiful moments.

Old Presbyterian Meeting House Donates Clothes

Each year, Old Presbyterian Meeting House in Alexandria donates clothes and coats for our children and families. This month they donated more than 20 bags of clothes for our families! Pictured to the left is one of our preschool students who benefited from the donation. She is sporting her new coat which could not have come at better time as it turned much cooler this week and this young girl needed a jacket to play on the playground. Special thanks goes to Lisa McGonigle who coordinated the event for the Old Presbyterian Meeting House. You can learn more about OPMH here.

Boeing Employees Give Back

This past Saturday, Boeing employees braved the rain and wind in order to help us paint our family resource room and build a shed on the playground at our Birchmere center. Undeterred by the weather conditions, they labored for five hours to improve the facilities of our Birchmere center which this year serves 54 families living in poverty. When asked what brought them out on a cool, wet day to paint and build, each of the volunteers, in their own way, cited the same reason: a desire "to give back."

The shed Boeing employees helped construct will be used to store playground equipment and outdoor toys, such as tricycles, easels, and hulahoops. The family resource room will serve as a place where parents can gain information about community resources and access the internet to search for jobs, etc.

Boeing has been a true champion for early childhood education in this region, and has been one of our major supporters over the past decade. This year, they have awarded CFNC two grants: one to purchase fundraising software that will increase the capacity of our development team, and another to fund our early childhood education programming. You can learn more about Boeing's philanthropic activities here.

Special thanks goes to Oris Davis, Joe Fore, and Dale Rainville.

Magic Moments

On Monday, May 12th 5th grade students from St. Stephens/St. Agnes performed a magic show for children at CFNC's Birchmere center. Enjoy the video of the American Flag trick and please forgive my shaky hands. Next time I will film from a steadier surface. For a small photo gallery of the magic show click here. The children absolutely loved the magic show, evident at the end of the short video! Thank you very much to all of the students. What a show!