DCFI LogoDanbury Children First Updates
Parent Leadership / Parent Engagement
March 2009 Volume 2, Issue 2
In This Issue
"Pig Out on Reading!" Day
Early Childhood Advocacy Day
Take the Danbury Parent Survey!
Quick Links
Join Our Mailing List
Greetings!  

Please join us on Saturday, April 4 from 1:30 pm to 3 pm for Danbury's first Pig Out on Reading Day! It's a fun event for the whole family--and a chance to meet Daisy, the World's Most Famous Pig! See below for details.

Danbury parents had the opportunity to have their voices heard about issues affecting young children when they traveled to the Capitol in Hartford for Early Childhood Advocacy Day on March 18. For a report of the event and pictures, read below.

It's your last chance to take the Danbury Parent Survey! The survey is part of the Parent Resource Initiative, a community-wide project to make sure parents in Danbury can get connected with the resources they need to raise happy, healthy children. The survey is available in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

Thanks for taking a few minutes to read this newsletter. If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at [email protected].

 
Caroline LaFleur
Communications Coordinator

Farmer Minor Join Us for Danbury's First
"Pig Out on Reading!" Day!


On Saturday, April 4, from 1:30 pm to 3 pm, Farmer Minor and Daisy, the Famous Pot Belly Pig will be coming to Danbury's Park Avenue School!

"Pig Out on Reading!" Day gives children the opportunity to meet and pet Daisy as she listens to her favorite books about pigs!

It's a fun event for the whole family that will include storytelling by Farmer Minor about Daisy's early years with Farmer and Mrs. Minor. We'll share Daisy noises, give Daisy a treat, and talk about Daisy's pampered life and how she became the world's most famous pig!

For a copy of the flyer about this event, with Directions to Park Avenue School, click here.

This is a FREE event for Danbury families who complete the Danbury Parent Survey before or at the event. For more information about the "Pig Out on Reading!" Day, call Danbury Children First at 797-8088.

To learn more about Farmer Minor and Daisy, go to their website at: www.daisyminor.com.

 
ParentsatCapitolFifty Danbury Parents and Their Children Traveled to the Capitol for Early Childhood Advocacy Day

On Wednesday, March 18, 2009, 50 Danbury parents and children traveled to the Capitol Building in Hartford in a bus organized by Danbury Children First as part of a statewide Early Childhood Advocacy Day sponsored by the Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance.

Parents and their children, donned in bright yellow "It's All About The Children" T-Shirts, spoke directly with Danbury-area legislators, including State Senator Mike McLachlan and State Representatives Bob Godfrey and Janice Giegler.

The parents told the legislators personal stories about how their young children benefited from Connecticut's Early Childhood programs, such as the School Readiness Program, Head Start, Care4Kids, and Family Resource Centers.

Parents also attended a session to learn about the current status of early childhood programs in Governor Rell's state budget during this exceptionally difficult budget year. The session was sponsored by Connecticut's Early Childhood Alliance and Connecticut Parent Power. All together, more than 400 parents, children, and childcare providers from 16 communities across the state attended the Advocacy Day.

To see more pictures of Danbury Parents at Early Childhood Advocacy Day, click here.

To find out more about how the Connecticut budget may affect programs for children and families, call Danbury Children First at 797-8088, or click here to visit the Connecticut Early Childhood Alliance Website.

Last Chance to Take the Danbury Parent Survey!

Danbury Children First is working with parents from all sectors of our city, as well as community leaders, on the Danbury Parent Resource Initiative. It's a plan designed to connect Danbury parents to resources and to each other--so all parents in Danbury will have the tools they need to raise happy, healthy children.

To help us in this planning, we're trying to gather as much information as possible about what it's like to raise children in Danbury
. That's why we've developed a survey for Danbury parents. It's an online survey that can be completed in 15 minutes.

To complete the Danbury Parent Survey in English, click here.
To complete the Danbury Parent Survey en Espa�ol, click here.
To complete the Danbury Parent Survey em Portugu�s, click here.

We encourage you to forward this e-newsletter to other parents in the community, so that they can share their thoughts and experiences, as well.

If you fill out the survey online, and would like to attend the "Pig Out on Reading Day" event, simply speak to us when you arrive at the event.

We're hoping to create a plan that will serve parents from all walks of life--including grandparents, teen parents, foster parents, and parents of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds and income levels. Your input, through the survey, will be extremely valuable.

To find out more about the Parent Resource Initiative, click here, or call Linda Kosko at Danbury Children First at 797-8088. Or email [email protected].