MassBudget: From Poverty to Opportunity

From Poverty to Opportunity: The Challenge of Building a Great Society Fifty years ago economic growth in America was leading to rising wages across the income spectrum and progress towards broadly shared prosperity. In that context the nation launched a series of Great Society initiatives to expand opportunity to those who were still being left behind - and to improve the lives of all Americans. Over that decade poverty in America declined substantially, from 22% of the population to 14%. But, beginning in the 1970s, our economy changed and wages stopped growing with the economy. The gap between the very wealthy and everyone else began to grow, and poverty has increased. MassBudget's new report From Poverty to Opportunity: The Challenge of Building a Great Society traces how the economic and policy changes since the launch of the Great Society have affected the lives of people at all income levels in Massachusetts. This report is being released in conjunction with the Massachusetts Association for Community Action's (MASSCAP) convening: Joining Together: Ending Poverty Now.  While we see real success from a number of programs, including SNAP (Food Stamps) and the Earned Income Tax Credit that are lifting hundreds of thousands of people above the poverty threshold, far too many children remain poor or near poor. In the years since wages for low and middle income workers stopped growing with the economy poverty and child poverty have increased in Massachusetts. Poverty puts children at risk for poor health outcomes, higher risk for dropping out of school, and a greater likelihood of a lifetime of poverty. And when children don't have the opportunity to reach their full potential we undermine the long term strength of our economy. To read the report, please click HERE. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center | 15 Court Square | Suite 700 | Boston | MA | 02108

You can help the Food Pantry

• by volunteering
• or donating food and non-food items
• or donating financially

Franklin Food Pantry

Greater Boston Food Bank features the Franklin Food Pantry in November newsletter

The Greater Boston Food Bank has featured the Franklin Food Pantry in the November newsletter.

Erin Lynch is the Executive Director of the Franklin Food Pantry, one of the 550 hunger relief agencies throughout eastern Massachusetts that receives food from The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB). The Pantry serves 600 Franklin households in need, who pick-up groceries once a month and can access more healthy foods through new programs. 

“When I was a kid, my parents ran a ‘soup kitchen’ in inner city Baltimore where I helped out. The Franklin Pantry’s mission is one I’m passionate about. 

“GBFB is a tremendous resource for us. Though we are a small organization entirely funded by individual donations and grants, we get to leverage GBFB’s huge ‘buying power’ to acquire quality food we might not be able to afford otherwise. This is especially true for expensive frozen meats and other high-protein, high-nutrient items. 

“In addition, GBFB shares best practices and connects the Pantry to needed resources, potential partners, and important information. Its system of ranking food items by their nutritional value helps us ensure we provide healthier, more balanced food choices to our clients. Inspired by GBFB, we’ve implemented a ‘Healthy Futures Market,’ that collaborates with local farms for a weekly distribution of fresh fruits and vegetables in season, and features a chef who offers samples of nutritious recipes using the items offered. 

“GBFB’s leadership and support are helping the Franklin Food Pantry to increase our capacity. Using their model, we’ve implemented a regular Mobile Pantry which allows us to bring food to those who might have a hard time getting to and from our location: seniors, families with small children, and individuals who are disabled. These, along with other new programs, have increased our annual food distribution by 30,000 pounds. 

Greater Boston Food Bank

“I’m really excited about our recent GBFB capacity-building grant that will pay for a new walk-in refrigeration unit for the Pantry. It will allow us to safely store much more food so that we can serve even more of the Franklin community.” 

All of the work that the Franklin Food Pantry does (along with GBFB’s 550 member agencies) is critical to achieving our strategic objective of providing ONE MEAL A DAY to everyone in need in eastern Massachusetts.

You can review the full Greater Boston Food Bank newsletter here
http://www.gbfb.org/perch/resources/gbfbharvest-thanksgiving2014.pdf

or here

Kids Count: Two New Reports on Kinship Foster Care

PLACING KIDS WITH EXTENDED FAMILY HELPS THEM THRIVE When children need to be removed from their families due to concerns of abuse or neglect, they have a greater opportunity to succeed and thrive if they are placed with members of their extended family, rather than with people they don't know. Children who are placed with members of their extended family (their "kin") experience less disruption and trauma upon removal from their parents, and benefit from continued connections with their family, their cultural and linguistic heritage and their community. They also benefit from greater stability as those placed with kin are more likely to remain in one foster care placement, and they have a greater chance of finding a permanent home. MassBudget's new Kids Count analysis, "Family Ties: Exploring Massachusetts' use of Kinship Forster Care for Children in the Child Welfare System," is a companion to the Mass Law Reform Institute's (MLRI) release of a new Kids Count report. MassBudget finds that the state has made real progress over the past seven years, increasing kinship foster care rates from 20 percent to 28 percent for kids removed from their homes. But Massachusetts lags behind other states that have been able to place greater number of children, particularly children of color, with members of their extended families. MLRI's new KIDS COUNT report, "The Ties That Bind: Strengthening, and Reducing Racial Disparities in, Kinship Foster Care in Massachusetts" describes the evidence on the value of kin placements and examines the policies the state has been using to increase the number of kids placed with kin. It concludes by providing a detailed set of commonsense solutions to help the Department of Children and Families increase kinship care overall and make sure that that all children, regardless of their race or ethnicity, have the same chance to overcome trauma and thrive. The report also incorporates data from MassBudget's analysis that describes the trends in kinship placements overall and for children from different racial and ethnic backgrounds. The Ties that Bind makes the following recommendations for DCF: appoint a kinship care coordinator, implement a presumption in favor of kinship care, review its licensing standards in light of national model standards designed to promote kinship care while keeping children safe, get kin involved as soon as DCF becomes involved with a family, ensure that kinship foster parents are able to access all the state supports to which they are entitled, and build bridges into communities where kin live. The report also recognizes that DCF must collect and use data about the outcomes of these and other practice and policy changes. This is important to ensure that policies and practices are having their intended effect of increasing kinship care and promoting placement stability and permanent homes for children. As with any public investments, it will be important for DCF to demonstrate the effectiveness of efforts on this issue. That will require data demonstrating how many children are helped and how those children life prospects are improved. The Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center (MassBudget) produces policy research, analysis, and data-driven recommendations focused on improving the lives of low- and middle-income children and adults, strengthening our state's economy, and enhancing the quality of life in Massachusetts. MASSACHUSETTS BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER 15 COURT SQUARE, SUITE 700 BOSTON, MA 02108

Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center | 15 Court Square | Suite 700 | Boston | MA | 02108

Newcomers Craft Fair - Nov 8 - at Tri-County Reg VocTech

Newcomers Craft Fair

Hello!
I was wondering if you might be able help us to publicize our craft fair on your Facebook page or anywhere else?  In addition to collecting donations for the Franklin Food Pantry at the craft fair, we also donate funds in the spring to many organizations.  

As the craft fair is our only fundraiser, the more successful it is, the more we will be able to donate.  Last year we donated $4,500 to local charitable organizations, most based in Franklin, with the Food Pantry receiving the largest amount (based upon member voting).

Where can I buy one of the Patriot's game Raffle Tickets?

You heard about the raffle tickets donated by TeamFitness Franklin?

TeamFitness Franklin

5 club seats and $50 parking pass to
Patriots VS. Lions November 23rd at 1:00pm, Gillette Stadium

Face value of these amazing seats is $600 each, for a total prize value of $3,000!

Raffle Tickets $25 each, or 5 for $100, or 12 for $200

So when can I buy a ticket?

Members of the Board of Directors will be selling the tickets at the Food Pantry on Thursday, Nov 6 from 6:30 to 8:00 PM 

Members of the Board will also be at British Beer Company on Thursday, Nov 13 from 6:30 - 8:00 PM

And the final opportunity will be before the winning raffle ticket is drawn on Sunday, Nov 16th also at British Beer Company. Ticket sales will start at 6:00 PM and close just before the drawing.

British Beer Company

Our thanks

• to TeamFitness Franklin for the donation of the Patriots tickets to enable this raffle
• to British Beer Company for the opportunity to sell the tickets there.