Great Start Families Connected

Family Newsletter- Sign Up On our website
Please contact Kelli Stuifbergen our "Family Engagement Specialist" with any questions, concerns, or future family engagement ideas at kelli.stuifbergen2@alleganaesa.org

*Families must register for purple events listed on Families Connected Calendar at bit.ly/familiesconnected2025 or with the QR code on the flier.

*You are only able to register for the current event. The registration will open again after each event, for the next event, this is due to different attendance restrictions for each event. Please be sure to check back frequently to register for the next event. Registration will also be posted on social media.

Allegan County's Great Start Collaborative (GSC)

This school year, we will be hosting Caterpillar & Butterfly Play-and-Learns. Caterpillar Play-and-Learns are intended for children, who are still in cocoons (swaddlers), stationary, and/or crawling.
Butterfly Play-and-Learns are intended for children, who can walk, run, and/or climb.

• Great Start Readiness Program- Enrolling ALL 4-year-olds for FREE Preschool. Enroll your child on Help Me Grow Allegan's website (hmgallegan.org).or call 269-512-7775. Families can enroll their child in-person at our "Come See Us" events this month.

Car Seat Inspections- NEXT DATE: September 10, 2024 (12-3pm) at 323 Water Street, Allegan

Car Seat Availability- Email carseats@communityactionallegan.org to see if car seats are available.

• Diaper Bank- Alternative pick-up sites.
• Allegan County- CAAC (Allegan), Redemption Place of God (Allegan), New Life Essential Store (Wayland), St.Sephen's Diaper Bank (Plainwell)

Vision and Hearing Screenings & What Parent's Should Know

Sign up for Imagination Library! Each month, a FREE hard cover book will be delivered to your home. All Allegan County children ages 0-5 years old are eligible for this program.

NEW!!! Dolly Parton's Imagination Library is moving from United Way of Allegan to Allegan County Community Foundation! ACCF will continue to partner with AAESA to bring books to every child in Allegan County aged 0-5.

Did you know that Allegan County has many Little Free Libraries all over the county? You can take and leave books at these locations as often as your family would like to!

In order to better align with GSRP's Pyramid Model

"Promoting Social-Emotional Competence in Infants and Young Children",

our Great Start Family Coalition is now marketing

parent events, support groups, parent classes, and

community engagement opportunities with the same 3 colors/tiers.

• Pregnancy+ App- A flyer has been developed to promote Pregnancy+, the MIHP preferred mobile app for families: Pregnancy+ Flyer. Please consider using this to share information with families about this unique mobile app which features Michigan-specific resources such as WIC, home visiting, tobacco cessation, and more. This flyer is also available on the Parent/Family Resources section of the MIHP website.

• Doulas serving Allegan County
• Women, Infants & Children website
• Mother to Baby website- https://mothertobaby.org MotherToBaby specializes in answering questions about the benefit/risk of exposures, such as medications, vaccines, chemicals, herbal products, substances of abuse, maternal health conditions and much more, during pregnancy or breastfeeding in both English and Spanish..
• Breath-4-Baby- Asthma support for pregnant mothers
• WIC Breastfeeding Hotline: 1(833) 649-4223. Available 7 days/week 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.
• Postpartum Help- https://www.postpartum.net/
• Michigan Breastfeeding Network (www.mibreastfeeding.org): Statewide collaborative for advocacy, education and coalition building to create a supportive breastfeeding culture.
• InfantRisk Center Call Line (https://www.infantrisk.com/): Provides up-to-date evidence based information on use of medications during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. Call 806-352-2519 Monday-Friday from 8:00 AM-3:00 PM.
• Free COVID Tests at Home- Covidtests.gov
• Infant Recalls: https://kidsindanger.org/

We are here to connect families to local agencies' resources, services and programs.

Please refer your families with children (ages 0-5 years old) to our Help Me Grow website or phone number (269-512-7775) for assistance.