Back to School Fair Helps Families to Prepare

Hundreds of children and their families turned out for the 13th annual Back-to-School Fair at Project Self-Sufficiency on Thursday. Workshops gave parents tips about detecting and preventing child sexual assault, information about local resources for families with children up to the age of eight, and access to support for adults contemplating a college education. Meanwhile, children got free haircuts, played games and received back packs brimming with free school supplies. Representatives from local social service organizations were on hand to discuss topics ranging from healthcare to household safety to literacy. Fire safety was addressed with younger children. Agency staff members and volunteers handed out school supplies, played games, organized crafts, and provided refreshments.

“Project Self-Sufficiency is proud to offer the Back-to-School Fair to our participants again this year,” commented Deborah Berry-Toon, Executive Director at Project Self-Sufficiency. “The helpful information and services available to families at this event prepare both children and their parents for a successful school year. We are grateful to all of the social service agencies, businesses and volunteers who took time to lend a helping hand to local families in need.”

Sussex County Community College representatives Edwina Cariati, Todd Poltersdorf and Theresa Siebert conducted a workshop for adults about the new Campus to Campus college assistance program offered in conjunction with Project Self-Sufficiency. Tactics for teens and adults interested in learning about the warning signs displayed by predators and victims of child sexual assault were addressed by Project Self-Sufficiency Enough Abuse Program Coordinator Melissa Bischoff. A discussion of the resources and information available to Sussex County families who are parenting children up to the age of eight through the new Project Sussex Kids program was offered by Program Coordinator Haley McCracken.

Participating social service organizations, health care agencies and emergency responders included Birth Haven; Boy Scouts, Patriot Path Council; Campus to Campus; Caring Partners of Morris & Sussex; Center for Prevention & Counseling; Sussex County Council for Young Children; DAWN Center for Independent Living; Division of Child Protection & Permanency; Domestic Abuse Services, Inc.; Enough Abuse; Family Intervention Services, Morris Sussex Mobile Response; Family Link; Family Partners of Morris & Sussex Counties; Foodshed Alliance; New Jersey Master Gardeners; Ginnie’s House; Green Township Fire Department; Legal Services of Northwest New Jersey; Literacy Volunteers of Sussex County; National Alliance for Mental Health (NAMI); Newton Police Department; Northwest New Jersey Supplemental Nutrition Program, Education & Support Network; NORWESCAP; NORWESCAP Head Start; Parent Interactions with Schools/Teachers; Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey; Planned Parenthood; Project Self-Sufficiency; Statewide Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN); Sussex County Community College; Sussex County Division of Social Services; Sussex County Special Child Health Services; Sussex County YMCA; and the Sussex/Warren Chronic Disease Coalition.

Professional stylists from several area salons volunteered their time to offer free haircuts to students, including Mancuso Salon, Roseann Francavilla, Salon Fig, Scissor Joint, and The Village Mane. “The stylists who volunteer to cut hair at the Back-to-School fair each year are to be commended for their graciousness, patience and enthusiasm,” noted Berry-Toon. “The children look beautiful, and the parents are delighted because the service is free and available to their families each year at the fair.”

Project Self-Sufficiency is a private non-profit community-based organization dedicated to improving the lives of low-income families residing in northwestern New Jersey. The agency has served more than 20,000 families, including more than 30,000 children, since its inception in 1986. Project Self-Sufficiency’s mission is to provide a broad spectrum of holistic, respectful, and comprehensive services enabling low-income single parents, teen parents, two-parent families, and displaced homemakers to achieve personal and economic self-sufficiency, family stability, and to improve their lives and the lives of their children. The agency offers a supportive family-centered environment where life issues are addressed through a combination of individual counseling, peer support groups, case management services, parenting skills training, life skills management training, home visits, childcare and early childhood education, family activities and health education. For information about any of the services provided at Project Self-Sufficiency, call 973-940-3500, or visit www.projectselfsufficiency.org.