August 5, 2020/by Amy Reiss
“Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. The third is to be kind.”
-Henry James
FamilyKind Expands its Outreach During Covid-19
In March 2020 as the quarantine kept everyone indoors, FamilyKind quickly pivoted its programs to virtual platforms. While the in person parenting classes were on hiatus, FamilyKind transitioned on-line to accommodate its clients including:
an online parenting class (Click here)
Coping with Co-parenting webinars highlighting conversations about racism and the impact of Covid on coparents (Click here)
peer-to-peer webinars to support professionals working with families virtually (Click here)
teaching the STEP-lite parenting class through Zoom (Click here)
providing services through Zoom
having an online support group for Adult Children of Divorce (Click here)
According to Lesley Friedland, the executive director of FamilyKind, “Covid-19 pushed us out of our comfort zone, and we had to step up to continue to serve our families. To this end, we now provide all programing online.”
Global Outreach for Families
Prior to Covid-19, most of FamilyKind’s clients were primarily from New York. During the 7-week online STEP-lite program taught by Ellen Taner, parents Zoomed in from across the United States plus a variety of countries including Australia, England, and Jamaica. Moreover, our Coping with Co-parenting Webinar Series started in March with a discussion about Covid, which has had over 1,600 views across the country and internationally.
As the stress from the pandemic’s unknown future impacts every corner of our lives and homes — from online schooling to changes in family time and living arrangements — FamilyKind’s online tools and on-demand resources are helping families and clients cope better, especially whenever they are in need.
French, Spanish, and ASL
As FamilyKind expands its global outreach, we are delighted to have professionals who can work with clients who speak a variety of languages including French, Spanish and American Sign Language (ASL). We are currently working on:
a video in ASL to offer our services to the Deaf Community
partnerships with other organizations that work with the Deaf Community
having an ASL interpreter at select programs upon request
ensuring that each of our videos has closed captioning
Emily Jonas, FamilyKind’s Director of Parent Services, will be able to connect you with the service that is right for you – ejonas@familykind.org
Atypical Children
Since 2012, FamilyKind has taught parenting, and co-parenting techniques, including I-Messages, reflective listening, stop-look-listen, and reframing. These techniques often need to be modified for children with special needs. We enthusiastically welcome Julia Taner, a social worker at a school for children with emotional challenges, to consult with our professionals in situations involving atypical children. Julia has been learning about parent education her entire life from her Mom, Ellen Taner, our highly regarded Director of Program Development.
In May, FamilyKind established a peer-to-peer professional webinar series to assist professionals. While professionals are working from their home offices, this is an opportunity to hear from experts, share ideas, and sustain each other with tools and strategies during this difficult time. During the peer-to-peer series, that takes place on the third Monday of each month from 1 pm – 1:30 pm, professionals share their experiences and advance how FamilyKind is assisting families through separation and divorce.
While we all navigate through the daily twists and turns attached to Covid-19, FamilyKind continues to be available for guidance through our online parenting classes, webinars, support groups, mediation, parenting coordination and communication services. For more information as to how FamilyKind can assist your family, please reach out to Giseel Rodriguez, Associate Coordinator of Parent Education – grodriguez@familykind.org or (212)769-3057.