The Berkey family

is the first to complete the entire voluntary program.
By Donna M. Perry
Staff Writer

FARMINGTON – Tammy Berkey learned how to be a better mother through a parent education program.

Berkey, 27, of Farmington was pregnant with her first child in September 1998 when she enrolled in the Growing Healthy Families Program.

The program is a free, voluntary home visiting program that gives first-time parents support and practical tips on baby’s growth and development.

It’s a collaborative effort of Franklin Memorial Hospital, Franklin County Children’s Task Force, HealthReach/Teen Connection and community agencies. The state Bureau of Health provides grant money to pay for it.

The program provides three prenatal home visits and one postnatal visit to new mothers.

A trained home visitor looks in on a family as often as needed until the child’s fifth birthday.

On Tuesday, Berkey’s daughter Tashia turned 5.

Berkey, Tashia and another daughter, Chelsie, 2, celebrated the family’s completion of the program Tuesday. Joining them were Berkey’s mother, Cindi Gross of Wilton, and members of the Franklin County Children’s Task Force.

A big, white frosted marble cake with red and green frosted trim and an array of balloons sat in the middle of a table in the agency’s conference room.

The Berkey family, which includes father, Jason, who was unable to attend the party, is the first to complete the whole program.

Tammy Berkey was the 128th person to enroll in the program that was launched in 1997. Now the initiative serves more than 760 families.

Berkey told those gathered that she should be throwing the task force a party.

“They’ve been there if I had any questions,” she said. “They’re great friends. They’re very helpful.”

Berkey said she has learned “it’s OK to ask questions. They’ve showed me how to raise my kids.”

When she enrolled in the program she was going through some tough times, she said, but staff members helped her and continued to help over the next five years.

When she had her second daughter, Berkey said, a home visitor helped her deal with sibling rivalry.

Susan Richards is Berkey’s third home visitor. Berkey’s mother brought Richards a bouquet of yellow roses to thank her for helping her daughter.

“When I first met Susan,” Berkey said, “I was a neat freak.”

Richards had come to the house to teach Tashia about texture using orange Jell-O.

“Tashia was squealing” with delight, her mother said, over the prospect of playing with Jell-O.

At the end of the activity, Tashia doused herself in the Jell-O by dumping the whole big bowl over her head, her mother said.

“And now I can accept mess,” Berkey said. “It’s OK to get messy . . . so we’ve had a lot of mess.”

dperry@sunjournal.com

Copy the Story Link