McConaughy Terrace Weekly Library Night Programming Fall & Spring Fairs Kids in the Kitchen Say Yes to the Prom Dress: Prom Dress Shop From 2013-2019, the League has partnered with Project Hope to provide high school juniors and seniors with prom dresses, accessories and shoes for their prom for free! Members collected dresses throughout the year and then volunteered their time at the shop to set up the store, steam dresses and help the girls pick out dresses. All Our KinIn the fall of 2007, the JLGNH provisional class conducted a children’s book drive for All Our Kin (AOK). AOK is a nationally-recognized, New Haven-based nonprofit organization that trains, supports, and sustains family child care providers to ensure children and families have the foundation they need to succeed in school and life. It equips caregivers with skills and resources to move out of poverty and open child care businesses in their communities; builds the capacity, quality, and viability of existing child care businesses, through individualized mentorship and support; and furnishes working parents with resources to find and keep high-quality child care. New Haven Public School Cooperative ProjectThis project began in 2005 in collaboration with the Timothy Dwight Elementary School. Over the years, the project has changed and expanded to include the Student Family Parenting Services program at Wilbur Cross High School, and most recently the Clarence Rogers Elementary School and the Polly McCabe High School. The League has sponsored a wide variety of cultural enrichment programs and contributed volunteer hours by reading with the students, donating books, creating cozy reading corners, providing support to students and teachers for CMTs, and bringing “Kids in the Kitchen” to the school, a program to educate children about healthy lifestyle choices. | Fighting Hunger Project Beginning in 2005, the League partnered with The Connecticut Food Bank (CFB), a private, non-profit organization whose mission is to alleviate hunger by supplying food products and resources to eligible programs throughout Connecticut. To help raise awareness about the issue of hunger and to feed families in need, League members have donated, sorted, and packed non-perishable food for distribution to agencies, participated in the Caravan of Carriages, and participated in the Walk Against Hunger. Police Family RoomIn 2001, the League teamed up with the Yale University Child Study Center and the New Haven Police Department to develop the New Haven Police Family Room, a safe haven for children and families requiring immediate need. Located at police headquarters, the room provides a quiet retreat for both children and adults. It was a three-year JL community project from 2001 – 2004 that was funded in part through a luncheon featuring Dr. Henry Lee. Clifford Beers Clinic PartnershipIn 1991, after much hard work, the League's signature project for the next six years was born: Elm City Kids, an evening child care program for the children of men and women in substance abuse treatment programs. The project was developed in conjunction with the Hospital of St. Raphael and, in the mid- 90s, it also gave rise to the related Parenting Workshops, a speaker's series that taught parents about child care, health and nutrition. Following the tradition of turning projects over to the community, in 1997 Clifford T. Beers Guidance Clinic took over the Elm City Kids program. New Haven Home RecoveryEstablished in 1990 as a provider of emergency shelter for families, New Haven Home Recovery works to address the housing and support service needs of women with children. Junior League provisional members created the Reading Room at the Martha’s Place housing unit. Additionally, League members have created a garden at Martha’s Place and have given the residents a much appreciated spa night. In 2009 the League held a "Homeless Awareness" Happy Hour to benefit the residents of New Haven Home Recovery. The League collected over $1000 in items to support the purchase of new women's robes and slippers. Ronald McDonald House PartnershipIn May of 1982, the League was approached with the idea of putting together a designer Show House to benefit the Ronald McDonald House. The project was a collaboration with the Pediatric Family Center and finally came to fruition in May of 1984. In preparation for the Show House '84, the League sponsored many fund raisers, including a wine booth at Oktoberfest, a “Khaki or Tacky Party,” and a Preview Party held at the Show House site. When all was said and done, the League donated $15,000 to the Ronald McDonald House. In 1995, another $1,000 was raised at a “Barbecue by the Sea” and donated to the Ronald McDonald House. In 1986, Pat Burelle chaired the Dream Auction '86, which raised $25,000. |