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Hello Families!
The Fall series Community Playgroups are wrapping up. Don't worry, the Center for Families has opened registration for the Winter series Community Playgroups. Registration forms must be turned in by Friday, December 16th. The winter series will run from mid-January 2017 to mid-March. There will be three groups for children ages 2-4 years old and two groups for children ages 15 months-23 months old. You can only attend one group per series. Each group meets 8 times! The theme this winter is music and movement! Each group will have kids and parents/caretakers learning about and experiencing music and movement together. Also, there will be Early Literacy Development Tips from the Agenda for Children Literacy Ambassadors! Please visit the CFF website and click on “Community Playgroups” for more info! Questions about registration? Email Cynthia at cwoodward@cambridgema.gov or call 617-349-6327.
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If you answered yes to any of these questions, consider applying to be a member of the Friends of the Center for Families! We’re in a period of transition and looking for eager, motivated volunteers to shape the future of the Friends. Starting in June 2016, we will meet quarterly to plan fundraising activities during the year and attend community events to spread awareness. You will join a team of volunteers who are passionate about the Cambridge community and the Center for Families. We accept all levels of experience; all you need is your energy, ideas, and dedication! To learn more and to apply, please see the attached application.  Last month we asked the staff at the Center for Families a question: if they could offer any programs they are not currently able to fund, what would they be?
They came back with us with a very well thought-out and researched wish list with a great array of ideas, but one thing really stuck out at us: the majority of the the programs on their wish list were specifically for dads. If you have ever attended one of the many free playgroups, workshops or events the Center for Families offers, you know that they provide a wonderful selection of high-quality programs for everyone. They have worked incredibly hard to strengthen all of their programs, particularly their programs for dads. This has included completely revamping their monthly dads & kids meetup, adding workshops for dads, hiring a Fatherhood Outreach Worker, and starting a text campaign that now reaches 250 dads in the city. As the Center for Families shares, "We believe that by providing opportunities for men to build social connections, get support and information on parenting and child development, and creating space for fathers to be with their children, the Center is creating a cultural shift in the way both fathers are viewed in the community and how fathers view themselves." We know how important dads are. For example, according to the National Responsible Fatherhood Clearinghouse, a subsidiary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, "When fathers are involved in the lives of their children, especially their education, their children learn more, perform better in school, and exhibit healthier behavior" (quoted from their website). Based on the important role dads play in their children's lives and a need the Center for Families has identified, we have decided to make our 2015-2016 fundraising year "The Year of the Dad." We are focusing our fundraising efforts on raising $7,200 so that the Center for Families can provided even more high-quality programs to engage more dads in Cambridge. These programs include:
How can you help? Help us spread the word! Like Friends of the Center for Families on Facebook and share with your friends about "The Year of the Dad." Donate to our campaign -- every amount helps! For example,
Volunteer to help plan our spring fundraiser, The Bids & The Bees. You can e-mail our president, Bev Feldman, for more information.
We are a team of volunteers passionate about the Cambridge community and the Center for Families and we're looking to grow our team. We have several positions we are looking to fill for the 2015-2016 year which starts on July 1. This is a great opportunity for people who are interested in learning more about being involved in a nonprofit organization and/or want to give back to the Center for Families. We accept all levels of experience; all you need is a few hours a month to volunteer and dedication. Download our application below for more information and to apply. 
Whew, what a great night we had on Friday for our 2nd Annual The Bids & The Bees! We had a ton of fun bidding on some fantastic prizes and watching people get challenged with some pretty crazy words we have never even heard before. Thanks to you and our business partners we were able to raise over $4,000 on Friday night! Weren't able to attend the event but still want to help out? We hope you'll consider making a donation! Be sure to check out some photos from the event. Wow, we are just a day away from our 2nd annual The Bids & The Bees. It has been a crazy few months preparing for it, but we are so thrilled the big day is finally here. This is our opportunity for both staff at the Center for Families. as well as parents, to kick back, relax, and celebrate the amazing community we have thanks to the Center for Families.
We also want to give a big thank you to some of our friends who are sponsoring the event, including:
Don't forget, today is your last day to buy your tickets online! (You can still buy them at the door, but you'll save a few dollars by purchasing them online.) We are looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night! We are so thankful to the business community for their financial support for this year's The Bids & The Bees. Our silver-level sponsors include:     We look forward to seeing you Friday! Tickets are still available online for purchase until the end of the day Thursday.
The Bids and the Bees is only four days away--yay! We'd like to tell you about some more of the fabulous items and services that have been generously donated by local businesses to our silent auction:
Whether you're a longtime fan of these local businesses or have never experienced them, you've got a great excuse to treat yourself AND support the Center for Families at the same time! Please click on the links to check out their websites, and get ready to place your bids!  We owe a huge amount of gratitude to our sponsors for the 2nd Annual The Bids & The Bees. Thank you especially to our friends at HYM Investment Group. Based in Boston, for over 35 years HYM has been working on real estate ventures in the Boston, New York and Washington, DC corridor. The HYM team collectively has over 70 years of experience in all aspects of commercial and multi-family real estate.
Our fundraiser is coming up fast on May 15, so if you haven't already bought your tickets, please do so!
We would like to highlight a few more of the cool items and services that have been generously donated to the silent auction:
Those are just some of the fantastic things you could win in the auction. Watch this space for news of more items in the coming days! |
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