For more than 200 years, The Village has been committed to helping children and families. Yet, 2020 has been a year like no other. When the pandemic hit, in-person mental health and wellness services came to a grinding halt. School-based programming and parenting education was put on hold. Many services were paused, and all four volunteer-run Second Chance Shops, which have generated more than $6 million in support for The Village, were temporarily closed, including the Suffield Second Chance Shop, located at 116 Mountain Road, Suffield. They have all reopened with reduced hours.
But as quickly as Covid-19 became a household name, The Village took the lead and, within days, quickly pivoted to roll out telehealth services—allowing thousands of children, adolescents and adults to continue their therapy, counseling and treatment, while those most vulnerable were still safely able to be seen in person by Village staff outfitted in full Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Despite enormous challenges, The Village has proudly served more than 20,000 children, adolescents and adults this past year.
Recognizing that many clients would be affected by extreme financial hardship when the pandemic hit and would struggle to pay rent or provide nutritious meals for their families, The Village and corporate partners established a basic human needs emergency assist fund that has helped relieve significant burdens for many families by granting more than $60,000.
Building a community of strong, healthy families is the heart of The Village mission. In addition to providing more than 40 programs to thousands across Connecticut, The Village often steps in to bring joy to children in other ways.
Every year, The Village partners with local businesses, organizations companies and friends to create a memorable holiday season for families in Greater Hartford. Last holiday season, we were able to deliver 3,000 toys and gifts through our Giving Tree Program.
But for this year the pandemic is forcing us to do things differently – and we need your help now more than ever. Instead of collecting gifts and toys to distribute, online donations will be turned into gift cards that will be distributed to families so they can purchase toys, clothing and food in time for the holidays.
Please visit the village.org/giving-tree to help keep this tradition of community support going during this uncertain time. Or, contact Sarah Adanti, Senior Director of Development at The Village, at sadanti@thevillage.org to learn how you can partner to spread joy this holiday season.