Our tough economy has resulted in both challenges and opportunities.

At How are the Children? we are working to connect and strengthen the informal safety net that supports the health and well-being of kids and families.  One challenge is finding and accessing appropriate resources for children and families. 

Many of you are on the front line, fielding questions from families looking for help.  In an effort to create a "one-stop-shop", How are the Children? has created a "Community Resources" page on our website.  You can download lists of resources with brief descriptions, contacts and links for more information.  Please let us know if we've missed anything.  These resources will be updated regularly so check back often.

Looking for a way to support children and families in our communities?  How are the Children? has posted  a list of organizations who accept donations of food, household goods, furniture, clothing, and cash.  If one of your New Year's resolutions is to clean and organize, bring food and/or your clean, gently used clothing, towels, sheets, coats, boots, etc. to one of these organizations. 

All of these organizations provide services to our neighbors and would be great places to support. 

In the past few weeks, I've talked with a couple of people who weren't aware that there is help for struggling families in Suburban Ramsey County.  If you are a resident of Suburban Ramsey County, including Arden Hills, Falcon  Heights, Lauderdale, Little Canada, Maplewood, Mounds View, New Brighton, North St. Paul, Oakdale, Roseville, Shoreview, Vadnais Heights, White Bear Lake or White Bear Township, and you or someone you know needs help with Basic Needs (food, clothing, shelter) our Community Resources for Family Basic Needs lists resources specifically available to children and families living in Suburban Ramsey County.  We also have a longer, more comprehensive list with more resources for families with young children. 

During the winter of 2009-2010, we are launching a Kids Matter Network to support and build capacity in all of the settings where kids spend their time—from recreation programs to schools to faith communities to businesses to scouting and other youth groups.   Suburban Ramsey County has many, many adults working both as volunteers and as paid youth workers who know and show, through their actions and commitment, that Kids Matter.  Our Kids Matter Network is being created to support their work. 

Just as social capital is important to individuals, it is also important to groups and organizations.   We heard from many of you that you would like opportunities to learn about what is going on in Suburban Ramsey County, chances to meet with like-minded people, and opportunities to share and learn from each other and from experts.  If you are interested in learning more about our Kids Matter Network, contact us. 

There are many programs and services serving children and families in Suburban Ramsey County.  We have begun compiling brief descriptions of some of the many groups and programs serving children, young people and families in Suburban Ramsey County.  [NOTE:  If you would like your program or organization listed, please contact us.]  We encourage you to contact these organizations directly to learn more about how you can contribute your time, talents, or resources to benefit kids. 

Bel Air Elementary School Mentoring Program

Contact:  Tess Koepke

651-621-6315 or tess.koepke@moundsviewschools.org

How are the Children? is partnering with Bethel University to identify and inventory  all programs, projects, and organizations who impact children, youth, and families in our communities.  We are particularly interested in identifying the informal, or less formally organized, services and sources of support offered voluntarily by individuals and families, in neighborhoods, through faith communities, at workplaces, etc.  The information we gather will be used to inform us as we intentionally build better communities for kids and families living in Suburban Ramsey County.  This mapping began in November, 2009. 

Our Social Capital Mapping goals are to:

Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone and Better Together, researches and writes about social capital, and more specifically about the decline in informal connections between people.  We’ve excerpted below some definitions and discussions from his published writing.

What is Social Capital? 

Social capital refers to the trust, reciprocity, and shared understanding that arises from networks of relationships. 

Bonding social capital includes your ties to people like you—birds of a feather flock together. These are the people who bring you chicken soup if you get sick.

Bridging social capital arises from networks that encompass different types of people.  Bridging social capital is about fostering relationships across social divisions; it's about coming together to argue as well as to share.

Our goal is to build and enhance both kinds of social capital in Suburban Ramsey County.

Why Social Capital Matters

One of the ways organizations and groups are making sure that all children have relationships with supportive, caring adults is through invisible mentoring (sometimes known as the “red dot” program).  This program can be very helpful for identifying the young people who are quiet, go unnoticed, or who are at-risk for falling through the cracks. 

When a group decides to do invisible mentoring, they create a list of all children and young people.  This list is posted and all adults are asked to put a notation (e.g. red dot), by the names of the children with whom they already have some connection.  Once all adults have reviewed the list and noted their connections, adults meet to review the names of the young people who have no or very few connections.  At this point, adults are asked to agree to intentionally reach out and build a connection with one or more of these young people. 

How are the Children? is encouraging all formal and informal Suburban Ramsey county groups and organizations to join us in a community building movement to show that “Kids Matter” in our communities.  Everyone—including cities, schools, faith communities, youth groups, after-school programs, child care providers, businesses, employers, libraries, community groups, etc.—is invited to join together to be part of a bigger Kids Matter movement. 

Signing on is free and simple.  To be a part of this bigger movement to show “Kids Matter”, you just need to agree to the following commitments: