Mom's House Story
The History of Mom's House
Mom's House of Endicott, NY, Incorporated opened in 1988 and is one of seven chartered nationally by its parent corporation, Mom's House, Inc., founded in 1983 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Mom's House offers a unique and comprehensive program. Mom's House goal is to enable low-income, single parents to complete their education, gain meaningful employment and live independently from the welfare system. Mom's House thus offers the free NY State childcare and other support services that make this goal possible. Mom's House also recognizes that for these parents to truly succeed, their emotional and practical needs must be addressed as well; therefore, Mom's House provides a caring environment filled with encouragement and love for both parent and child.
Although Mom's House does not require a fee for services, it is not a give-away program. Each parent enrolled must maintain passing grades in every class, complete three hours per week of service time at Mom's House plus five hours of fundraising time per semester. Parents must also attend monthly lifeskills workshops on such topics as: time management, self-esteem, parenting skills, CPR, financial management, resume writing, health related issues, employment issues, as well as a variety of other topics. This system of "payback" ensures that parents are taking responsibility for their situation in a way that promotes growth and self-esteem.
Hours of operation are Monday through Friday 7:30am to 3:30pm throughout the school year. Parents have ranged in age from fourteen to forty years old. They have been enrolled in educational programs at the local high schools and trade schools and at Broome Community College, Binghamton University, SUNY Cortland, Elmira Business Institute, Ithaca College, SUNY Oneonta, etc...
Staffing consists of an Executive Director, Program Director, Office Manager, Administrative Assistant, two lead teachers, two group supervisors, three childcare aides, and approximately thirty volunteers. The staff child ratio is one-staff/two infants, one-staff/five toddlers, and one-staff/seven preschoolers.
Each Mom's House is responsible for raising the necessary funds to operate the childcare center on an annual basis. Five major fundraisers are held each year: Pizza Sale, Solution of Hope Banquet, Breakfast with Santa, Rocker-thon and Golf Tournament. Funding also comes from grants, donations, fund drives, support from foundations, charitable organizations, churches, civic groups, and people like you. The community support through monetary and material donations accounts for approximately eight-five percent of the overall funding.
Mom's House offers solutions of hope to those faced with difficult choices. February 28, 2009 marked the twenty-first anniversary of our opening. As of June 2009, 179 parents have graduated from their respective educational programs while their child was enrolled at Mom's House. Their graduation gives them the opportunity to either continue on to a higher education or to secure employment in their chosen field. Mom's House stands as a living monument to the power of loving action in creating new lives for two generations of young people.