Blog
06/12/2024 HopeWell Awarded Cummings Foundation Grant
Funds to Support Early Literacy Among Elementary School Children Experiencing Foster Care in Greater Boston PRESS RELEASE: JUNE 12, 2024 (DEDHAM, MA) – Cummings Foundation has awarded HopeWell a three-year, $100,000 grant to improve educational outcomes among children in grades K-3 who are experiencing foster care. The grant is part of the Foundation’s $30 Million
05/23/2023 Encouraging more Massachusetts residents to consider opening homes to foster care: Recent HopeWell survey shows many hold misconceptions
HopeWell President and CEO Shaheer Mustafa sat down with WCVB 5 Boston to share the results of our recent statewide survey about foster care in Massachusetts. He also addressed some common misconceptions people have about foster care and encouraged more Massachusetts residents to consider becoming foster parents. See the full story from WCVB 5 Boston
05/21/2023 Amid critical need for foster parents, most Massachusetts residents lack understanding about foster care system; yet agree supporting it is a priority
New statewide poll, commissioned by HopeWell, suggests education is key to recruitment PRESS RELEASE: MAY 21, 2023 (DEDHAM, MA) – A new statewide poll suggests that Massachusetts residents have a mostly positive view of the state’s foster care system, but misconceptions and a lack of knowledge about the process create barriers that may prevent them
05/17/2023 Winning off the field by uplifting children and families
HopeWell is proud to be one of six foster care organizations across New England to receive grant funding from the New England Patriots Foundation, the New England Revolution Foundation, Robert Kraft, and the Kraft family. As part of National Foster Care Month, Robert Kraft, the Kraft family, and the Foundations hosted an event at Gillette
05/09/2023 Panel Discussion: Foster Care in America
There are more than 400,000 children in foster care in America. What does the current state of foster care in America look like? What’s working in the system, what’s not working, and what can be improved? HopeWell’s President & CEO Shaheer Mustafa joined other nonprofit foster care providers from around the country in a conversation
02/06/2023 The Foster Parents’ Bill of Rights is officially law in Massachusetts!
The Foster Parents’ Bill of Rights expands and codifies the rights of foster parents in Massachusetts and improves how decisions can be made with each child’s best interest in mind. One of HopeWell’s very own foster parents, Mari Gonzalez, did an amazing job testifying in support of this legislation! The Children’s League of MA and
07/29/2022 HopeWell announces hiring of Vice President of Child and Family Programs
HopeWell is excited to announce that Imani Seunarine will join the organization as its new Vice President of Child and Family Programs! Imani brings more than 20 years of experience in mental and behavioral health, clinical work, and child and family programming. “Imani brings a vast background in supporting youth and families from historically marginalized
06/15/2022 18 & On Your Own
“Aging out” of foster care. What’s next? For your typical young person in America, turning 18 or 21 means newfound independence — whether it’s going off to college or having a first legal drink, most young adults eagerly await these milestone birthdays. But for more than 20,000 young adults in this country, turning 18 or
03/08/2022 HopeWell condemns Texas treatment of transgender youth and families
We call on child welfare professionals to affirm the rights, humanity, and dignity of transgender children and adolescents. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the Texas Department of Children and Family Services to investigate parents who seek standard-of-care medical treatment for their transgender children. In a directive based on a 13-page propaganda-filled memo by Texas
12/22/2021 With urgent need for more foster families in Massachusetts, Cape Cod woman shares her story
Cape Cod nurse’s assistant Yneishka Medina spoke with Latoyia Edwards from NBC10 Boston about her experiences in foster care and the urgent need for more foster families in Massachusetts right now. She credits HopeWell with connecting her and her sister to a loving foster mom who helped her achieve her dreams. READ THE FULL ARTICLE
09/05/2021 ARPA funds can be used to assist young adults transitioning out of foster care
The COVID-19 pandemic has put stress on all of us, and some of us — including young adults transitioning out of foster care — were already living under incredibly trying conditions. 18-year olds with few family supports and resources are expected to secure housing, a job, and live independently, often with little preparation. Teens who
07/21/2021 HopeWell announces hiring of Vice President of Research, Policy and Learning
HopeWell is excited to announce that Julie Segovia has joined the organization as its first Vice President of Research, Policy, and Learning! Segovia brings 15 years of experience in human service program management, including research design, implementation, and analysis. She worked, most recently, as a Doctoral Research Assistant in the Ensuring eXperiences for Children’s Early
05/27/2021 HopeWell announces hiring of Chief Development Officer
HopeWell is excited to announce that Lisa Rowan-Gillis will join the organization as Chief Development Officer! Rowan-Gillis brings 30 years in nonprofit development, donor engagement, and community philanthropic initiatives. Most recently, she served as Chief Development Officer for United Way of Mass Bay and Merrimack Valley, where she led fundraising initiatives totaling an annual average
02/11/2021 Reducing racial disparities in child welfare
Our country is having a renewed reckoning with its racist history and what systemic racism continues to look like today. After signing his January 26 executive order on racial equity, President Joe Biden said, “we face deep racial inequities in America” and “systemic racism that has plagued our nation for far, far too long.” Biden
02/02/2021 $1M of PPE, 52 human service providers, and two generous donors
In January 2021, HopeWell received $1 million worth of personal protective equipment (PPE) to distribute to human services nonprofits throughout Massachusetts! This is thanks to the generosity of ProCure Hope, a nonprofit formed by professional volunteers that responds to COVID-19-related crises — it was their second donation of PPE to HopeWell during the COVID-19 pandemic.
01/19/2021 A special letter from 2 special kids
Just before the holidays, we received a special letter in the mail. It was from two young boys, who also sent along $60 to purchase gifts for children experiencing foster care. Eli and Jack are just 11 and 8 years old, but decided they wanted to do something this holiday season for families in need.
12/01/2020 HopeWell to move office from Metheun to Andover
We are moving our office that serves the Northeast region of Massachusetts from Methuen to Andover. The address for our Andover office will be 40 Shattuck Road (Suite 217), Andover MA 01810. Our Andover office will serve Essex County, parts of Middlesex County, and parts of Suffolk County. SEE THE FULL ARTICLE IN THE BOSTON
11/23/2020 Patriots Foundation honors HopeWell foster parent
One of HopeWell’s longtime foster parents, Joan Phillips, was honored by the Patriots Foundation as a Myra Kraft Community MVP! The award was named in honor of the late Myra Kraft and what she valued most in her life — service to others. That epitomizes Joan’s work with youth who are experiencing foster care. Since
09/10/2020 Reporting neglect based on truancy during virtual learning: Our view in the Boston Globe
The Boston Globe recently published an article about state social workers responding to 51A reports for child abuse and neglect concerning student’s with increased absenteeism and truancy during remote learning. In a letter to the editor, HopeWell CEO Shaheer Mustafa responded: Frivolous pandemic-related reports expose how schools fall prey to bias The pandemic continues to
01/10/2020 Liberty Mutual awards HopeWell a $300,000 grant
PRESS RELEASE JANUARY 10, 2020 (BOSTON, MA) Liberty Mutual Insurance today announced the first round of recipients of a $5 million philanthropic effort to support organizations in greater Boston working to reduce and end youth homelessness. Nineteen local nonprofit organizations are among the first round of grant recipients announced today. Organizations awarded grants today
08/26/2019 HopeWell joins forces against the treatment of children at the US border
DOWNLOAD THE FULL LETTER The undersigned organizations, which are committed to the prevention of child abuse and neglect and the well-being of children, write to express our grave concern with the ongoing treatment of children at the United States border. As child welfare advocates with expertise in the impact of trauma on children, we are
07/26/2019 HopeWell’s My First Place™ program receives funding from Boston Children’s Hospital
PRESS RELEASE MAY 1, 2019 (BOSTON, MA) HopeWell is delighted to announce that it has received $75,000 over three years from Boston Children’s Collaboration for Community Health. The grant will support HopeWell’s My First Place™ program (MFP); an education and employment program that provides safe, stable housing, and case management support for youth who have
06/18/2019 Marblehead teens build bikes for kids experiencing foster care
“Everyone deserves to have a bike.” A group of 15 teenagers in Marblehead, Massachusetts spent a summer weekend building bikes to donate to HopeWell’s Roxbury office, where we will distribute them to children experiencing foster care. READ THE FULL ARTICLE
08/16/2018 Interview with a foster parent
We can learn a lot about kindness, generosity, and love from foster parents. They open not only their hearts, but their homes. It doesn’t get more basic than that — but it’s this simple yet profound gesture that sets them apart. Meet April. April has been a foster parent for almost two decades and
08/06/2018 How to talk to your kids about fostering
One of the most common questions we get about becoming a foster parent is: “How will this impact my own children and how do I explain this to them?” It’s very common for foster parents to also have children of their own. And with nearly 60 years of experiencing as a leading foster care provider