Empower Families

It’s a partnership meant to last.

Children develop faster and with more ease when the adults surrounding them enter into a partnership of support. At Friends Center we work closely with parents and caregivers to support each individual child’s growth and education. With a comprehensive Emotional Wellbeing Program, parent cooperative model and events and workshops, we empower families with support, resources and a strong sense of community.

“Now walk your imaginary dog around the room.” “Listen for the cuckoo in the woods” New Haven Symphony Orchestra’s Carnival of the Animals inspired Friends Center children and parents to experience the orchestra in a whole new way. Research shows that music helps young children with language skills, literacy, numeracy, creativity, personal and physical development and more. It also provides a powerful platform for parents and children to bond and connect. Each year, Friends Center families have an opportunity to share a unique musical experience created in partnership with the New Haven Symphony Orchestra and University of New Haven. The event features an opportunity for children to try out instruments of all kinds, followed by an interactive symphony that

“Now walk your imaginary dog around the room...”

Empowering families takes many forms at Friends Center. Many are in the abstract, but critical, areas of emotional and social support, while others are more simple, tangible…and tasty! In partnership with FOOD RESCUE US, each week Friends Center offers our families access to fruits, vegetables, breads and other nutritious eating options. Likewise, each year, our annual potluck proffers a feast of community and culture. We fill our plates with arroz con pollo, fried okra and lasagna; perch on child-size chairs; connect and reconnect with fellow Friends Center families, all the while filling our bellies with the goodness of the traditions and conditions that nurture us.