FCJ board members Lucinda Brown and Linda Singer administer Waiting Room Welcome, and the program is making a big difference. On a recent Thursday morning, the women sorted through kid-friendly materials to create gift bags for youngsters. They perform this function six times a year because contact visits between children and incarcerated parents are allowed only every other month.
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The Womanhood Program is designed to help women involved with the Criminal Justice system. Weekly guest speakers presented interactive lectures or workshops that offered guidance, community resources, and helped to create a pro-social environment to help empower these women and lead to a more productive life.
Some topics include:
The Franklin Foundation for Community Justice supplied the funding for the Womanhood Program’s community service project, where the women made blankets which will be donated to a children’s shelter.
In 2022 the Franklin County Foundation for Community Justice made a gift to the Wildflower Alliance of Greenfield, MA. We received this feedback about the donation:
The Foundation for Community Justice donation was a blessing for 12 unhoused folks in Greenfield that were supported by our Outreach Advocate, Larry Thomas. Gift cards were purchased and used to assist these individuals who were camping outside over winter’s harshest months. Larry accompanied four people to Walmart in Orange where they bought essential survival supplies. Another person was supported to get minutes on his phone for emergencies, and to connect with resources to help change his situation. Three people went to Carhartt on Chapman Street and purchased good wool socks. And, one person was supported to purchase gas for the car he was living in to help stay warm and access community supports.
Thank you so much for your support. It made a huge difference for some of Greenfield’s most marginalized, often forgotten community members.
We’re so grateful to be a part of this healing work in Franklin County!