Press Releases

Brightpoint, HRC Join Record Number of Partners Working on LGBTQ+ Inclusivity

Brightpoint is proud to be one of 172 child welfare organizations joining the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s All Children – All Families (ACAF) program in 2023, as highlighted in a new report. Together, these organizations work to improve the services provided to the LGBTQ+ community, including children in foster care and prospective foster and adoptive parents who are LGBTQ+.

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Brightpoint Awarded the Illinois Board of Education’s ECBG Award

Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, has been selected for the 2024 ECBG Award from the Illinois Board of Education. This grant will be used to support early learning for 48 students at our Scott Child & Family Center in Bloomington, IL.

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Brightpoint’s Rockford Crisis Nursery Exterior Painted by United Way of Rock River Valley

Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, is excited to welcome the United Way of Rock River Valley, who will be sending six volunteers from Watt Global and Pyramid Plastics, campaign partners of the United Way, to paint the interior side of the fence that borders the outside play area at the Crisis Nursery in honor of the United Way Day of Caring on September 28th.

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Brightpoint and One Summer Chicago youth unveil new mural at the Brightpoint Back to School block party which provides community resources and is a celebration of Brightpoint’s new brand identity

Join Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, at our Marshfield office for the unveiling of our One Summer Chicago mural at 2 pm and the 5th Annual Back to School Block Party from 1 pm-4 pm. We will be joined by Deputy Chief of Staff for Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Dr. Cristina Pacione-Zayas.

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Brightpoint Child & Family Center provides community resources and celebrates new brand identity

Join Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, for a summer party at the Scott Child & Family Center, with our Central Region programs as well as various community partners to offer resources to the community
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Two prominent early childhood care and education providers affiliate to expand statewide reach to Latinx communities

Brightpoint acquired El Hogar Del Niño on July 1st, 2023, which marked the beginning of a partnership to increase early childhood care and education, parent support, mental health and wellness and youth services to Latinx families.
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Brightpoint Child & Family Center provides community resources, celebrates summer and new brand identity

Join Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, for a summer party at the Jerri Hoffmann Child & Family Center, with program participants as well as various community partners to offer resources to the community
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Brightpoint Child & Family Center provides community resources, celebrates summer and new brand identity

Join Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, for a summer party at the Marletta Darnall Child & Family Center, with program participants as well as various community partners to offer resources to the community.
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Brightpoint Mitzi Freidheim Child & Family Center provides community resources and celebrates summer and new brand identity

Join Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, for a block party at the Mitzi Freidheim Child & Family Center, with program participants as well as various community partners to offer resources to the community.
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Brightpoint  Child Care Center provides community resources, celebrates summer and new brand identity

Join Brightpoint, formerly Children’s Home & Aid, for a summer block party at the Community Child Care Center of Palatine Township, with program participants as well as various community partners to offer resources to the community.
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140 year old Illinois nonprofit wants to end the need for the foster care system as we know it and rebrands

140-year-old organization rebrands with mission to address root causes of child neglect and abuse.
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Central Illinois business and community leaders celebrate those working to improve the lives of children and families and a new brand identity

Central Illinois business and community leaders will celebrate the successes achieved through the generous community support for Children’s Home & Aid.
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Children’s Home & Aid Event Draws Wide Attendance, Enthusiastic Support

Community leaders gathered to discuss ways to create opportunity by reinvesting in families through innovative economic solutions aimed at reducing poverty at a special event held by child and family service agency Children’s Home & Aid.
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The 2023 Blue Bow National Child Abuse Prevention Month Event.
Public Officials, Child Advocates Launch Awareness Campaign to Protect Illinois Children

Children’s Home & Aid, in partnership with Prevent Child Abuse America and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, will come together at the Blue Bow event for National Child Abuse Prevention month to recognize community partners and organizations that share the commitment to advancing the well-being of children by strengthening families.
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Children’s Home & Aid Launches the Madison County Coordinated Intake System

Children’s Home & Aid is proud to announce the launch of the Madison County Coordinated Intake System. The project is supported through a grant from the Governor’s Office of Early Childhood Development – Preschool Development Grant Birth-5 (PDG B-5)
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Choose to Change Named a Mutual of America 2020 Community Partnership Award Winner

Mutual of America announced today that Choose to Change was named an honorable mention award recipient of its 2020 Community Partnership Award competition.
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Children’s Home & Aid Participating in Indeed’s ‘Virtual Hiring Tour’ to fill open positions

Children’s Home & Aid announced today it will participate in Indeed’s free Virtual Hiring Tour program in an effort to fill more than 50 job openings with their agency.
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Children’s Home & Aid’s Early Head Start Home Based Program expanded to Boone, DeKalb and Grundy Counties

Children’s Home and Aid announced that a federal grant has opened 130 Early Head Start slots for children age 0 – 3 with another 20 slots allocated for new and expectant mothers in the three-county region of Boone, DeKalb and Grundy Counties.
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Mayor Lightfoot and Chicago Department of Family and Support Services Announce New Initiatives for Summer Youth Programming

Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and the Chicago Department of Family and Support (DFSS) announced the City’s youth summer employment program – One Summer Chicago (OSC) – will include paid, job and life-skills training via online cohorts and a special new Chicago Youth Service Corps (CYSC) of 2,000 youth dedicated to providing service to the city and its residents, including remote-support to the City’s COVID-19 response and recovery efforts. OSC programs will run for six weeks from July 6 to August 14 and will include 20,000 opportunities for youth this summer.
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The Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund (ICRF) announced today it distributed its fourth and largest round of funding thus far, an additional $6.95 million to 42 nonprofit organizations across the state.

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A Message from Michael Shaver, President & CEO: Facing two crises, together.

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University of Chicago Crime and Education Labs’ evaluation of Choose to Change suggests promise in improving life outcomes for Chicago’s youth

Today, the University of Chicago Crime Lab and Education Lab released the preliminary results of a multi-year evaluation of the Choose to Change (C2C) program. Choose to Change: Your Mind, Your Game (C2C) — co-developed and implemented by Youth Advocate Programs (YAP), Inc. and Children’s Home & Aid — combines intensive wraparound and mentoring services that focus on addressing each young person’s specific needs, with trauma-informed cognitive behavioral therapy that helps youth process their trauma and develop a new set of decision-making tools.
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Mayor  Lightfoot, CPS and CPD Join Students from Across Chicago in  a Citywide Call-to-Action to End Youth Involvement in Gun Violence

As part of the city’s commitment to end gun violence, Mayor Lightfoot announces a multi-year investment in students at the highest risk of gun violence involvement. Children’s Home & Aid believes this program is effective because of its unique approach. We work with youth to figure out what’s happened in their past in order to help them make better informed decisions in the future. Children’s Home & Aid is incredibly grateful and excited to be part of this joint effort to combat violence.

February 21, 2020

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Children’s Home & Aid Announces Family Visitation Center Open House

Children’s Home & Aid will host a Family Visitation Center (FVC) Open House to introduce expanded services for families struggling with domestic violence, dating violence, child sexual abuse, sexual assault, and stalking. On October 24th from 12pm to 2pm, the community is invited to meet the team, tour the facility and learn more about services.

October 21, 2019

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Northwestern University Dance Marathon Announces Children’s Home & Aid as its 2020 Primary Beneficiary

Northwestern University Dance Marathon (NUDM) will support the agency’s Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Child and Family Center located in Evanston. The location provides intensive therapeutic treatment to youth ages 6 to 15 who are in foster care and suffer from severe emotional, behavioral or mental health issues resulting from trauma.

Each year, many deserving charities submit remarkable applications to be NUDM’s primary beneficiary. NUDM 2020 will be held March 6-8, 2020 on the Norris University Center East Lawn at 1999 Campus Drive at Northwestern’s Evanston campus. NUDM is one of the largest independent student-run philanthropies in the country, raising more than $1 million for its beneficiaries in each of the past eight years.

May 22, 2019

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Innovative Leader in Child Welfare Returns to Children’s Home & Aid in CEO Role

Michael J. Shaver, a leader in child welfare and human services experienced in redesigning public systems and community-based, non-profit agencies, will return to Children’s Home & Aid, stepping into the role of President & CEO when the current leader, Nancy Ronquillo, retires June 30.

“Children’s Home & Aid is a first-in-class organization,” Shaver said. “The agency has a well-deserved reputation for always looking for strategies to improve on the work and reach better outcomes for children and families.”

Shaver served for seven years as Children’s Home & Aid’s Chief Operating Officer before leaving in 2014 to become the President & CEO of Children’s Home Society of Florida. “Some of the most important lessons I learned about being an effective CEO, I learned from Nancy,” Shaver said. “I learned the importance of building a strong team, listening to the field, and humility.”

April 5, 2019

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Governor Vetoes House Bill 581, Increases Uncertainty for Illinois Business Climate

Governor Bruce Rauner’s veto Friday of HB581, the Social Services Contract Act, further destabilizes contractual relations with the State of Illinois. The legislation would have provided small businesses and non-profits that deliver state services to Illinois children, families, and communities with greater certainty when it comes to the contracts that govern their work.

In his veto message, Governor Rauner asserted that he supports reasonable measures that give greater certainty to social service providers. HB581 provides precisely such mechanisms. HB581 garnered bipartisan support and passed with super majorities in both the House and Senate, and would have helped non-profits manage with greater certainty in this uncertain budget climate.

The Illinois Collaboration on Youth, Voices for Illinois Children, and Children’s Home & Aid are disappointed with the Governor’s choice to veto this legislation and urge lawmakers to override the veto when they reconvene this fall.

August 29, 2016

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Children’s Home & Aid’s Statement on the Executive Order Establishing the Governor’s Cabinet on Children and Youth

We applaud Governor Rauner’s formation of a Cabinet on Children and Youth. The many sources of funding and multiple state agencies that administer the services children need as they develop over 20 years often create artificial distinctions that distract us from our goal of growing healthy, educated children who are safe and thriving in strong communities.

February 18, 2016

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Crucial Program to be Suspended for At-Risk Youth on Chicago’s South Side

On February 15, Children’s Home & Aid will suspend crisis intervention services for runaways and youth at risk of delinquency in Englewood and West Englewood. The services are delivered through the state-mandated Comprehensive Community-Based Youth Services (CCBYS) program, which has been operating without payment since July 1.

January 25, 2016

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Children’s Home & Aid’s Woman’s Board Gala Raises More Than $550,000 for Early Childhood Education

During the 95th annual Woman’s Board September Gala more than $550,000 was raised to support early childhood education in the Chicago area. Rob Johnson, CBS2 News Anchor, was the master of ceremonies at the gala where 425 guests gathered to support three of Children’s Home + Aid’s early childhood centers.

September 12, 2015

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Children’s Home & Aid Wins $1 Million Grant for Project to Curb Youth Violence

From more than 200 proposals, a program developed by Children’s Home & Aid, a leading child and family service agency in Illinois, in partnership with Youth Advocate Programs, Inc., has won a $1 million grant to reduce youth violence in Chicago.

June 4, 2015

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Community Child Care Center of Palatine Township Receives ExceleRate Illinois Gold Circle of Quality Designation

Children’s Home & Aid’s Community Child Care Center of Palatine Township received the Gold Circle of Quality designation from ExceleRate Illinois, the state’s new quality rating and improvement system for early learning and development providers.

October 22, 2014

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Statement Regarding Recent Campaign Ads Linking Governor Quinn to DCFS-Involved Abuse and Neglect Deaths

Protecting and caring for children in Illinois should be a top agenda item for all our elected officials and we welcome increased awareness of the problem. Recently however, sound bite driven debates of DCFS-involved abuse or neglect deaths have reduced the complex issue of child welfare to a single statistic that does a disservice to the children we all want to protect.

October 9, 2014

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Hoffmann Family Supports Children’s Home & Aid

Children’s Home + Aid unveiled the construction of a new child and family center, the “Jerri Hoffmann Child + Family Center.” The project was announced at the organization’s annual gala held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago.

September 15, 2014

Children’s Home & Aid Woman’s Board Honors Mr. and Mrs. Gary Ahlquist

During its Annual September Gala, the Woman’s Board of Children’s Home + Aid honored Mr. and Mrs. Gary Ahlquist with the Pauline K. Palmer Award for their exceptional commitment and service to vulnerable children and families. The event is taking place the evening of Friday, September 5th at The Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago.

September 5, 2014

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Local Organization Celebrates 75 Years of Providing Home and Aid to Rockford’s Vulnerable Children

Children’s Home + Aid will celebrate its 75th anniversary with an open house from 1 to 5 p.m., Thursday, July 31. The event will be at the Northern Region Administrative Office, 910 Second Ave., Rockford.

July 17, 2014

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JPMorgan Chase Foundation Funds Children’s Home + Aid’s Learning Lab in Chicago’s Englewood Community

Chicago, IL – Children’s Home + Aid will host an opening ceremony for their newly launched Learning Lab U, an innovative computer and training center housed at Children’s Home + Aid’s Mitzi Freidheim Englewood Child + Family Center, on Monday, June 9, from 1 – 2 pm.

June 9, 2014

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Expulsion Three Times More Likely in Preschool than K-12

Bloomington, IL (March 8, 2014) — Children’s Home + Aid and the Governor’s Office of Early Childhood Development hosted a day-long conference today entitled Expelled by Five: Implications for Early Childhood and Beyond. Bloomington’s Mayor Tari Renner opened the event, which was attended by renowned experts in the field of early childhood education and over 100 Illinois childhood representatives and childhood education providers.

March 8, 2014

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Illinois Committee Joins Forces to Protect Children – April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month

Children’s Home + Aid, Prevent Child Abuse Illinois and the Illinois Department of Child and Family Services join forces to honor National Child Abuse Prevention Month in April. With events throughout the state, the three organizations, with dozens of partners statewide, aim to spread awareness about the issue of child abuse in Illinois and assist the public in locating and utilizing available prevention resources.

March 27, 2014

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CHILDREN’S HOME & AID WOMAN’S BOARD HONORS JERRY M. REINSDORF

During its Annual September Gala, the Woman’s Board of Children’s Home + Aid honored Jerry M. Reinsdorf, chairman, Chicago Bulls and Chicago White Sox, with the Pauline K. Palmer Award for his tremendous advocacy for community services in the Chicago area.

September 6, 2013

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Children’s Home & Aid Announces Beverley A. Sibblies as New Chair of the Board

Children’s Home & Aid announced today they have elected Beverley Sibblies as the new Chair of the Board of Trustees. Sibblies, Founder and CEO of BAS Financial Corp., will replace current chair Elizabeth Connelly, Region Head for J.P. Morgan’s Government, Not-for-Profit and Healthcare Commercial Banking business. The officers were elected during the May board meeting and will begin their term on July 1, 2013.

July 1, 2013

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JPMorgan Chase, Polk Bros. Foundation and Governor Pat Quinn
Honored at Champions for Children Luncheon

(CHICAGO) – Children’s Home + Aid hosted the 8th annual Champions for Children Luncheon on Monday, May 20th at The Palmer House Hilton.

May 23, 2013

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Children’s Home & Aid Woman’s Board Showers the Parents and Families of Englewood

(CHICAGO) – More than 75 attendees gathered on Saturday, April 27 at The Fortnightly of Chicago for a baby shower hosted by the Children’s Home & Aid Woman’s Board. On this beautiful spring day, the board members and their guests enjoyed afternoon tea and brought donated baby items to stock the Mitzi Freidheim Englewood Child & Family Center’s (MFECFC) family necessities pantry.

April 30, 2013

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Blue Bows Tied on Michigan Avenue Trees for Child Abuse Prevention Month

(CHICAGO) – Over 100 community leaders today joined Nancy Ronquillo, president and CEO of Children’s Home & Aid, and other child advocates at a kick-off Blue Bow Ceremony to pledge support for the 2013 Blue Bow Campaign. This 17th annual Blue Bow event at Fourth Presbyterian Church marks the beginning of National Child Abuse Prevention Month in Illinois.

April 2, 2013

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Governor Quinn Launches Pledge to Support Child Abuse Prevention

(CHICAGO) – In an effort to stamp out child abuse in Illinois, Governor Pat Quinn joins Children’s Home + Aid and the Illinois Blue Bow Committee to create the Governor’s Pledge.

April 1, 2012

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Local Companies Kick Off School Year by Delivering 5,000 Backpacks Full of School Supplies to Students at 10 Chicago Elementary Schools

Illinois State Senator Iris Martinez, State Representative Maria Berrios, and other public officials today joined employees from United Stationers, several other local corporations and Children’s Home + Aid staff to deliver 5,000 backpacks full of school supplies to high-need Chicago elementary students.

August 13, 2012

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Park Ridge Youth Campus to Combine with Children’s Home + Aid
Strengthening Mission for Both Organizations

The Board of Directors of The Youth Campus has voted to combine with Children’s Home + Aid, bringing together centuries of service to abused and neglected children.

July 2, 2012

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Healthy Families Program Receives DeKalb Community Foundation Grant

On November 10, 2011, the Sycamore office of Children’s Home + Aid was awarded a grant for $1,713 by the DeKalb County Community Foundation. The grant will be used to purchase a lap top computer and interactive software computer programs to teach parents at risk of abuse or neglect.

November 23, 2011

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Children’s Home + Aid Receives $2 Million Federal Grant Funding New Program to Support Teenagers in Foster Care Transition to Adulthood

Youth who “age out” of foster care without being adopted are at high risk of homelessness, poverty, unemployment, incarceration, as well as physical and mental health issues.

October 7, 2011

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Illinois Partners for Human Service and the Searle Funds at the Chicago Community Trust Partner to Raise Profile of Human Services in Illinois

Illinois Partners for Human Service today announced it received a $100,000 grant from The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust to support the continuing work of the Illinois Partners for Human Service coalition.

October 7, 2011

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“Gold Star Kids Workshops” is funded by a grant from the Dr. Louis and Violet Rubin Fund of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois

“Children’s Home + Aid has been awarded a grant of $20,000 by the Dr. Louis and Violet Rubin Fund, of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois,” Judith Loudin said today.

October 12, 2011

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Lloyd A. Fry Foundation Supports New Tri-Agency Collaborative Project Aimed at Improving Evaluation Practices in Children’s Counseling Programs

The Lloyd A. Fry Foundation has awarded a two-year grant of over $100,000 to the Tri-Agency Collaborative, a joint project between Children’s Home + Aid, Lutheran Social Services of Illinois, and the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago.

June 9, 2011

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New Office Expands Support to Jerseyville-area Children and Families

The Southern Region of Children’s Home + Aid will open its new office in Jerseyville, Illinois, tomorrow, May 17, to bring professional staff closer to children and families in need of counseling and other support services.

May 13, 2011

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Agency Leads Improvements in Care for St. Clair County’s Youngest Kids

The State of Illinois selected Children’s Home + Aid Southern Region in January to lead a collaborative effort to analyze and develop care systems for families of children under five years old in St. Clair County, Ill.

February 2, 2011

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New Partnership to Prevent Abuse in St. Clair County Homes Announced

In January the southern region of Children’s Home + Aid welcomed a new program that will train over 60 early childhood centers in St. Clair County, Ill., to partner with families in keeping children safe at home.

February 2, 2011

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Children’s Home + Aid Opens New Support Group
New Resource for Military Families Begins in February

The stresses of military service can take its toll on parents and children. To compound the difficulties, many military families are often spread out in communities and isolated from each other and from the family resources of a military base. To provide help and support for military parents and caregivers, Children’s Home + Aid announces the opening of a new support group for military families.

January 6, 2011

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The Sara Lee Foundation Supports Children’s Home + Aid’s Efforts to Help Children and Families in Humboldt Park Community Learn Healthy Habits for Themselves and the Planet

The Sara Lee Foundation is the Corporate Partner of the Lowell Lions After School Nutrition and Wellness Program, part of Children’s Home + Aid’s Community Schools Initiative.

October 8, 2010

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Children’s Home + Aid Receives Adoption Excellence Award from U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

The Northern Region of Children’s Home + Aid was awarded an Adoption Excellence Award for Support for Adoptive Families from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, DC.

October 6, 2010

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Healthy Families Illinois DeKalb County Advisory Council Forms

The Healthy Families Illinois program provides services for first time parents in DeKalb county who have been identified by the DeKalb County Health Department as “at risk” for abuse and neglect.

October 6, 2010

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Illinois Partners for Human Service and The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust Partner to Raise Profile of Human Services in Illinois

Illinois Partners for Human Service today announced it received a $125,000 grant from The Searle Funds at The Chicago Community Trust to support the continuing work of the Illinois Partners for Human Service coalition.

October 4, 2010

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Children’s Home + Aid Dedicates Marletta Darnall Schaumburg Child + Family Center

Children’s Home + Aid today held a dedication ceremony for the new Marletta Darnall Schaumburg Child + Family Center, celebrating the gracious commitment of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Darnall to a lifetime of learning for children from low-income families living in the northwest suburbs.

June 22, 2010

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Blue Bow Ceremony Marks Child Abuse Prevention Month
Officials, Advocates Kick Off Month-Long Campaign to Protect Illinois Children

Dorothy Brown, Cook County Clerk of the Circuit Court today joined Children’s Home + Aid President and CEO Nancy Ronquillo and Prevent Child Abuse Illinois Executive Director Roy Harley for the fourteenth annual Blue Bow Ceremony at the Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago in observance of National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

April 1, 2010

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Children’s Home + Aid Receives “Say It Out Loud” Campaign Grant to Raise Awareness and Promote Good Mental Health in DeKalb

Children’s Home & Aid announces it is the recipient of a $10,000 “Say It Out Loud” grant from the Illinois Violence Prevention Authority.

February 8, 2010

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