In June 2022, Andrea was referred to Home Start for Family Visit Coaching due to substance abuse and neglecting the needs of her infant. She was working on getting sober so she could have custody of her baby girl. Andrea worked with a Home Start Visit Coach and made incredible progress throughout their time together. They met twice a week for a little more than three months.
In August, Andrea was granted unsupervised visits. Unfortunately, shortly after, she was arrested for a prior incident. The arrest caused her to miss a visit and put her back on supervised visitation.
Andrea did not allow these previous charges to affect her progress and continued to improve so that she could get full custody of her daughter. She continued her supervised visits with Home Start and eventually proved she was making good decisions and meeting her daughter's needs.
Throughout the entire process, Andrea did not lose hope and put on a brave smile during every visit for her daughter. After weeks of successful supervised visitation, she was granted two overnights and gained more nights after just a couple of weeks. As time went by, Andrea was granted full custody of her daughter, and she was very grateful and thankful to Home Start’s staff who helped her along the way, advocated for her, and built up her confidence that she was and could be a great parent.
Your support helps young parents like Andrea build brighter futures for themselves and their children. See how you can get involved below.
Attend an Event
Blue Ribbon Gala and Hallo-Wine
Home Start hosts two major fundraising events each year:
The Blue Ribbon Gala
The Blue Ribbon Gala is San Diego’s premier fundraiser for child abuse prevention held in April, which is National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This event raises critical dollars for Home Start to serve our community’s most vulnerable children, families, and individuals.
National Child Abuse Prevention Month recognizes the importance of families and communities working together to strengthen families to prevent child abuse and neglect. Through this collaboration prevention services and supports help protect children and produce thriving families.
We invite you to come and be a part of it! Tickets for the 2023 Blue Ribbon Gala are on sale now!
Hallo-Wine
The Hallo-Wine Fall Festival is held every October in recognition of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. All proceeds raised provide critical assistance to San Diego’s most vulnerable children and families through Home Start's programs. Each day, Home Start staff serve the community in an effort to prevent child abuse and ensure the safety of San Diego's most vulnerable children and families. Every child deserves healthy development and a thriving family.
This event offers local vendors the opportunity to share their products with Home Start donors by providing samples to our 250-300 guests. Guest tickets include unlimited food and wine samples, games and activities, access to amazing silent auction packages, live music, and the opportunity to hear from a Home Start client.
If you are interested in vendor opportunities, please contact RaeLynn Fuson (rfuson@home-start.org) to learn more.
Volunteer
How can you help families in need?
Home Start is in the community working to strengthen families every day. You can change the life of a child and help stop the cycle of abuse and neglect through a variety of volunteer opportunities.
We have several types of volunteers at Home Start:
- Board & Committee opportunities.
- One-time, occasional, and ongoing volunteer opportunities for individuals across a wide variety of projects and interests, from admin help to garden projects, sorting Thrift Boutique donations to providing tax assistance.
- Opportunities for groups to help with annual events, outreach, beautification, and more.
- Internships for BA, MSW & Psy.D. students currently enrolled in accredited 2- or 4- year college or graduate level programs receiving course credit.
- Some court-ordered volunteer service.
Home Start values dedicated and reliable volunteers across our organization. Please read below for current needs or email our Volunteer Program Coordinator, Manasi Watts, at mwatts@home-start.org to find the right volunteer opportunity for you!
See our current volunteer needs here.
Donate
Home Start’s Support for Vulnerable Children and Families
San Diego’s most vulnerable children and families depend on the generosity of supporters like you. You can make a difference in their lives by donating to Home Start. Your gift helps us continue to:
- Manage our housing programs to keep our clients sheltered
- Distribute critical resources like food and hygiene items
- Provide safe therapy practices and child-abuse prevention curriculum in person and via telemedicine
Home Start needs this crucial funding now to maintain our essential services, and keep our clients safe and protected. Thank you for your generous support of Home Start’s life-changing programs.
You can make a one-time gift here or become a Home Start Hero monthly donor here.