State legislators: PCCD grants will help at-risk parents and children

HARRISBURG, June 10 – The Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency awarded two Montgomery County programs a total of $247,007 to meet the needs of Montgomery County children and parents affected by domestic violence, substance abuse and crime.

Family Services of Montgomery County, in partnership with the Montgomery County Reentry Initiative, was awarded $147,010 in Violence and Delinquency Prevention Program funding to expand the Positive Parenting Program helping parents who are recently released from incarceration.

Montgomery County Children’s Advocacy Center’s Mission Kids program will receive $99,997 to continue family advocacy work, particularly to accompany children to medical evaluations court appearances.

“In addition to providing direct support to returning parents, this money also supports a key position at Mission Kids,” said state Rep. Steve Malagari, D-Montgomery. “With the increased demands for these services, Mission Kids needs a family advocate who can appropriately support the needs of our communities.”

"In my role as a state representative – specifically with regard to my position on the Children and Youth Committee – and most importantly in my role as a parent, the safety and wellness of children and families will always be my top priority,” said state Rep. Ben Sanchez, D-Montgomery. “That is why I am grateful for this opportunity to improve critical services in our county. It's particularly vital now as we continue to work our way through a crippling pandemic."

“These grants will help expand vital services in our communities. I’m pleased to see funding awarded to assist these agencies in the valuable work they do to support children and families,” said Rep. Joe Webster, D-Montgomery.

“Ultimately, this money is going to be used to reunite children with their parents after rehabilitation, and ensure a safe and nurturing environment,” said state Rep. Joe Ciresi, D-Montgomery. “We’ve heard directly from parents in their post-incarceration life who say they would have benefitted from a supportive or educational class before reentering the parenting arena.

“Parenting is never easy, but these grants will allow us to educate and engage these returning parents in order to reduce the risks for children and truly assist these parents by giving them further access to community resources. We want to empower our parents so that they can rise to the challenges their children are facing by having the support and training they need.”