Coat Check

BRANFORD:

    With increasingly gloomy economic predictions making life tough for the very shoreline charities whose demand for services are on the rise, one after school program by the Branford Board of Education (BOE) is providing a little sunshine.

    The School Aged Child Care program (SACC) is part of the BOE’s after school plan. According to the director, Ginger Vickstrom, the program helps foster the Branford community and civic responsibility.

    “Children need to be aware of others and what the community needs,” said Vickstrom. “We try to enrich their lives in many way and this is one of them. This is really their neighborhood–they have known each other since kindergarten. I think children feel good about giving to others.”

    Supervisor Joanne Barbash helps coordinate the Murphy school’s program for kids in grades K to 4. With a long record of community service projects, the program focused on a coat collection drive for this semester’s efforts.

    “This goes with our theme of kindness and compassion,” said Barbash. “The kids get really excited about it.”

    In this drive the Murphy School kids collected close to 100 coats, which were trucked out last week to be distributed to the Branford Clothing bank.

    Barbash said the community, including many parents, may have misconceptions about how beneficial after school programs can be for young minds. These programs don’t just kill time finger-painting until parents can pickup their kids.

    “A lot of people think after school programs are simply babysitters. We feel they are more than that,” Barbash said. “I feel that after school child care is not understood by people and it’s important to have a clear idea of what we do. These programs, including the coat collection at Murphy, are examples of kindness and community concern that are the core of the effort. It’s really good for parents to see what their kids are actually accomplishing after school.”

    The SACC program has been involved with numerous service organizations in Branford in the six years since the program’s inception, according to Barbash. Students are involved in a wide variety of civic and community events, including efforts at the Orchard House and making treats for the guests at the Branford Animal Shelter.

Pictured: Members of the School Age Child Care after school program got the students at Murphy elementary to collect more than five huge bags of coats for those in need to be distributed to organizations in the New Haven area.

Photo by Nancy Dionne