A Special Day to Say "Thank You!"

Dear Friend of BGV:

Today is a special day to say “thank-you!"  BGV has been able to continue growing and adapting to meet the changing needs of at-risk families in Connecticut.  We have impressive growth, adding new programs to ensure we are treating as many needs as possible.  Some new programs over the past couple years include:

Quality Parenting Centers (QPC)

BGV now operates two QPC’s, one in Milford and one in Bridgeport. This program offers supervised visits between a child and their family from whom they’ve been removed. Designed to preserve and restore the parent/child attachment, BGV uses a “Visit Coaching Model” that occurs in the least restrictive, most homelike setting possible and reduces the child’s sense of abandonment and loss. Our goal is always to return the child to his or her family when possible. The QPC’s served 108 individuals in 2023.

 STAR

For adolescent boys who have been removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect, the Enhanced STAR Program, a short-term care facility with trauma treatment, substance use therapy, and family engagement, opened last year in Bridgeport. STAR provided care to 29 boys in 2023.

 The Kraft House

The Kraft House is a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF) on the Milford campus providing inpatient psychiatric services under the direction of a physician to boys ages 12-18 including clients with substance use disorder (SUD). Kraft House is a 12-bed program and can be used to avoid a more restrictive placement, such as hospitalization, or as a step-down from a more restrictive placement. This home opened in June 2023 and 26 individuals have been housed there so far.

 Work to Learn and Vocational Learning Center

Our vocational programming has had many exciting additions over the past year including:

·       A food truck for Work to Learn’s new youth-run business, Dynamic Dining: A Culinary Melting Pot. Work to Learn provides youth ages 16-21 educational and vocational services to help them successfully transition into adulthood.

·       Our Vocational Learning Center added two new forklift/backhoe simulators to its vocational skills curriculum. The simulators provide training with various levels of certification and allow our older students a pathway to future work possibilities in environments that require operating heavy equipment.

 All of our other work, including Therapeutic Foster Care, the Hayden School, outpatient therapy, in-home individual and family therapy, reunification programs, and parent support programs, continues to thrive thanks to the important support of donors like you.

 In Fiscal Year 2023:

• BGV served 906 unique clients
• 32% of all clients come from Bridgeport and 71% come from Fairfield County
• Our behavioral therapy programs had a 97% satisfaction rate among families of children served.
• 70% of children in Therapeutic Foster Care found a permanent home including family reunification, adoptive family, relative, or independent living situation.
• 88% of families were reunited after participating in our Reunification program
• 75% of clients in Safe Haven house for Problem Sexual Behavior showed a significant increase in functioning or a decrease in problem severity.

On behalf of the children and families in BGV's vast array of programs and services, I thank you for continuing to support our mission!

Kim Shaunesey, Ph.D. President & CEO

Letter from our President & CEO - 2023 Annual Appeal

Dear Friend of BGV:

This past summer I had the opportunity to spend some time with my daughter who is working towards her master's degree in marine mammal conservationism in Florida.  I assisted her in moving into a new apartment, co-signed a lease, and helped her to navigate insurance and automotive repairs after a minor accident.  I realized how much support she needed over the years and still needs from me, as a young adult, to maneuver in a complex adult world and to be happy and successful.

Too many of the youth in CT don't have any consistent, supportive adults in their lives, or access to education or vocational services, through no fault of their own.  This is why the programs that Boys & Girls Village provides are so essential to making a positive impact on the lives of the kids we serve.

BGV is here to help ensure that youth have a safe and comfortable place to live; that they receive an individualized education that meets their needs; that they are offered skills to be successful in adulthood; and that they can lead a happy and healthy life.  BGV can offer them the consistency and support they may have been lacking, and BGV can help the adults in their lives develop the nurturing stability every child needs. 

However, success is only possible due to all of you.  Because of the support from donors like you, BGV can continue to provide the essential services even though many of our programs are underfunded.  Your contributions and belief in BGV's mission are essential for us to keep building healthy pathways.

Thank you for your past support.  We ask you to please consider giving again this year as 2023 draws to a close.  Rising costs have put even more challenges on our programs.  We need you more than ever this year to help BGV positively impact the lives of not just the 900 youth in our programs, but also the thousands of family members, caregivers, teachers, and friends who are also impacted by this work.

It truly takes a village to raise a child, and our donors are the heart of Boys & Girls Village.  Without all of us working towards the same goal, BGV would not be celebrating its 81st year.  Thank YOU for all you do! 

Warm wishes, Kim Shaunesey, Ph.D. President & CEO