The Foundation partners with nonprofits that are striving to develop a continuum of care that encompasses both children and parents and extends from before birth through age five.

The Together for Kids Coalition is a growing network of 160 members that includes health, education, and childcare providers and parents. A member of the city’s Governance Council on Children, Youth and Families, the Coalition wrote the Early Childhood Strategic Plan for Worcester, a strategy to ensure a strong start for all children.

The Coalition’s Welcome Baby Project supports newborns and parents from the start and its Data Dashboard tracks child wellness through age five. A Coalition website enables parents to readily access resources and engage in advocacy.

Coalition members include Pernet Family Health Service, which for seven decades has been providing services that strengthen families throughout Worcester County. Pernet is committed to making a home visit to every baby born in Worcester through its Universal Newborn Home Visiting Program. Thanks to a Foundation grant, Pernet will enhance and streamline management of such programs by transitioning to an electronic medical records platform. “We’ll share more information sooner,” says Executive Director Sheilah Dooley, “cut time on paperwork, and gain more time for clients.”

Glō Mom, is a maternal health and advocacy organization that serves mothers from pregnancy through their first years of parenting. Its community baby showers connect expectant mothers, and its AfterGlō program provides new mothers with six weeks of home visits by a certified postpartum doula.