When Marsha M. was 18 years-old, she was single, pregnant and struggling with severe thoughts of suicide. Through CAMBA’s Families For Kids Program, she received the mental health services she needed to address her suicidal impulses. However, she had little idea how she was going to care for her new baby. To address this, Families For Kids referred Marsha to CAMBA’s Healthy Families Program. Healthy Families provided Marsha with parenting skills training and support so that she could develop the skills and confidence she would need to be a capable parent. Her Home Visitor, Lynda, also helped Marsha set goals for her life – a high school drop-out when she started the program, Marsha is now enrolled in a GED program so that she can continue her education.
Eight months after her first child, Jania, was born, Marsha gave birth to a pair of premature twins, Malachi and Marcus. Healthy Families worked with Marsha to reinforce her parenting skills and provided developmental screening services to ensure that all three of her babies met key developmental milestones. Lynda helped Marsha connect her family with primary medical care and ensured that the children attended well-baby visits, got required immunizations, and received lead screenings and other services to promote their healthy growth and development.