Finding a Community of Support

Nearly seven years ago, single mom Jessica Alamin welcomed her newborn daughter, Malia. “I was a new mom and worried about her development, but I wasn’t sure where to go for help,” Jessica explained. After spotting a flyer about CDR in the community, Jessica reached out. Shortly thereafter, Malia was assessed by CDR’s Infant & Parent Program (IPP) , and home visiting therapy, early intervention, and specialized therapies began.

“Malia was showing signs of autism and CDR picked up on that right away,” Jessica said. “We were able to get her diagnosed and begin the support she needed to stay on track with her development.”

Like many families, Jessica found help from more than one CDR program. In her case, it was Parents as Teachers (PAT), Early Head Start (EHS), and Circle of Parents. “CDR helped me with every part of being a parent,” said Jessica.

Five years after she first found CDR, Jessica found she needed help from CDR’s Motherhood program while she was pregnant with her son, Junior. “I needed help with postpartum challenges and breastfeeding,” she said.

When Junior was diagnosed with a speech delay, Jessica turned to CDR speech-language pathologists to help her encourage his speech development. And through CDR’s EHS program, Junior received high-quality full-day early childcare at one of CDR’s Early Learning Centers.

“My children received the services they needed, and I learned how to grow my parenting skills.”

PAT in 2023-24