This year, the need remains just as urgent. Rising costs and ongoing challenges mean more families are reaching out to Family Service of Rhode Island (FSRI) for help. And once again, we’re asking you to make it possible to bring joy, hope, and empowerment to children and families who need it most.

Here’s how you can give the gift of hope this holiday season:

Gift Cards

The Most Empowering Gift: By giving a gift card, you allow parents the dignity of choosing exactly what their children need—whether it’s clothing, essentials, or the perfect toy that brings a smile.

• Gift Card Wishlist

Specific Gifts by Age Group

Fulfill the wishes of children at every stage of childhood:

• Early Childhood Wishlist
• Teen Wishlist

Make a Donation

Your contribution helps us bring light and joy to families who might otherwise go without:

• Donate Here

Last year, your generosity helped fulfill the wishes of every child who came to us for support. This year, we know that the need will be just as great, and we need your help to make this happen again.

You can be the reason children in Rhode Island wake up with smiles on their faces, knowing they are loved and cared for by their community. Together, we can continue to make the holidays magical for those who need it most.

Thank you for being the heart of this effort. Because of you, brighter days are possible for the families we serve.

There are so many more children, like Ella, who are experiencing depression, anxiety, substance use and suicidal ideation who do not have access to the help they need.

Will you pause right now, and support children like Ella by donating $50 worth for a child’s therapy supplies; $100 for trauma counseling, $500 for a family therapy; or $1,000 for families like Ella’s to receive 24-7 emergency behavioral health interventions. DONATE NOW

Your dollars support programs like…

• Trauma Counseling, so that kids and families can access quality care to heal many kinds of trauma and live happier and more successful lives.
• Prevention Training, so that teachers and caregivers can learn to recognize mental health warning signs and intervene early with mental health “first aid.”
• Crisis response, so that when kids are having emergencies, we can go to their homes 24-7 and de-escalate situations and help families get the support they need.

FSRI, is a trusted 130-year-old human service organization, delivers highly impactful care for more than 20,000 RI kids and families each year using over 40 programs to help them get back on their feet again. FSRI is there for Rhode Islanders throughout their entire lives by helping parents with newborns, ensuring child safety and strengthening parental bonds, creating opportunities for working families to achieve economic security and financial independence, and helping seniors defeat isolation with social connection.

With the spirit of the holidays upon us, we hope you, name, will join us to improve the trajectory of a child’s life – someone like Ella.

Wishing you and your family the very best, now and always.

Sincerely,

Margaret Holland McDuff
Chief Executive Officer
Family Service of Rhode Island

So many of us have struggled through these last few difficult years. Now just imagine what it’s been like for our kids. These mental health stressors have hit our Rhode Island children especially hard– collateral damage of the uncertainty and isolation of COVID-19.

One out of every 3 kids is facing a serious mental health challenge– and all too often, help is not available.

We cannot sit still or stay silent.

We must act now!

So this year we’re doubling down on our efforts to end the children’s mental health crisis in Rhode Island, and making it our number one priority. And we’re asking you to join us.

We plan to expand our Children’s Mobile Crisis program, which provides immediate assistance to kids where and when they need it– 24/7.

Beyond offering acute care from our outpatient clinic at 55 Hope Street, we are rapidly expanding our staff to meet the needs of communities, schools, and homes– eliminating the lack of transportation as a barrier to care. We are committed to ensuring each family is able to connect with the services they need to thrive.

FSRI will be here for RI kids this year and always– and we hope you will be here for us. Will you help us get the word out about the crisis? Will you reach out to your personal and professional network to support this work? Will you volunteer with us? Will you make a donation today?

We realize that money is tight right now for so many– but we are hoping that many can give a little so that all can benefit a lot. Will you donate $50, $100, $500, or $1,000 to help OUR kids?

Right now, you can help end this crisis by ensuring that children who are suffering receive the support they need.  #JoinFSRI

With love and kindness for all,

Margaret Holland McDuff

PROVIDENCE, RI, December 6, 2022—The holiday season is a time for celebrating with family and friends, enjoying good food and special treats, and the joyous sounds of happy children exploring presents left beneath the tree. For some, it is a season of plenty. But many in our own community don’t get to experience the incredible blessings that most of us take for granted. 

For those in our most vulnerable communities, the holiday season is often associated with feelings of increased anxiety and stress. One in seven children – nearly 12 million – are living in poverty, making children the poorest age group in the nation, according to the United States Census Bureau, Income and Poverty in the United States: 2019 Report. 

“The generosity of our neighbors and businesses is extraordinary and inspiring,” said Kayla David, Vice President of the Home Division at FSRI. “We know that now, more than ever many families are struggling to make ends meet and our annual holiday support program provides much-needed relief to the families that we support.” 

Each year Family Service of Rhode Island (FSRI) seeks to disrupt this norm by teaming up with organizations throughout Rhode Island like Shaw’s Supermarket, and the Rhode Island State Police to collect gifts for families in need, providing much-needed relief to parents are caregivers alike.  

“During this season of giving, we look forward to spreading holiday cheer across our hometown communities,” Mike Goulart, Shaw’s District Manager. “We are truly thankful for the customers who join with us, and our nonprofit local partners, to help make the holiday season brighter for children and families across Rhode Island.” 

To donate a new, unwrapped gift – you bring it to any Greico Automotive Dealership or Shaw’s Supermarket (District 18) from now until December 16th. A list of commonly needed items is available here.

Find Items on our Amazon Wishlist:

• Gift Cards – https://a.co/6p6l3tQ
• Infants/Toddlers – https://a.co/gTcp4yF
• Teen List – https://a.co/9PUlqXj

Click here if you’d like to make a monetary donation.

Economic prosperity, environmental stewardship, and social responsibility.

Those are the three key pillars Cooley Group President and CEO Dan Dwight is committed to as a board member of Family Service of Rhode Island, an award-winning strategic leader, and a businessman. That’s why he and the Cooley Group decided to become the presenting sponsor for the Brighter Futures Event in 2022, going above and beyond to support FSRI’s mission to create equity in early intervention services for children and families in Rhode Island.

“There is a solid return on investment in early intervention, the earlier you can get to the family, the earlier you can get to the kids, you’re going to get a return,” he said. “And the return is you’re going to move all of those kids out of the system.”

Dan has served as a board member with FSRI for the past 10 years, where he provides strategic guidance and advice to CEO Margaret Holland McDuff and her team of community caregivers. He helps support fundraising efforts, serves as a spokesperson, and spreads the word about the organization’s important community work.

“Supporting FSRI financially, and as a Board member matters to me,” he said. “And to the 39 Rhode Island communities Margaret and her team serve.”

Dan was born and raised in Boston MA, where he still lives today. He grew up in a middle-class neighborhood and came from a large tight-knit family. Dan was close to everyone in his family, but he especially remembers looking up to his grandfather, who loved to build and fix things. He had a huge workshop at his house, where Dan loved to spend time with him learning the craft. His grandfather spent his career at GE aircraft where Dan would later go on to work himself for 17 years before moving on to the Cooley Group.

When Dan was recruited by the Cooley Group it was a family-owned business, and not being from Rhode Island he expressed his interest in wanting to get involved in the Rhode Island community.

That’s when Dan was introduced to FSRI by Mac Farmer, who was the legal counsel to the family who previously owned the Cooley Group and also served as Board Director at FSRI. Dan was immediately drawn to FSRI as an organization because it is the oldest serving family and community-based socially responsible organization in RI. He says was also impressed with the quality of the staff and their world-class dedication to the cause as well as Margaret’s rock-solid leadership.

Once he became involved with FSRI he was surprised to see how much need and demand there actually was in the community. He did not realize how much need there is for families behind closed doors that you don’t see out in the open. He was impressed with how Margaret and FSRI served as a bridge between the State’s resources and the need of the community. He realized the challenges that non-profit organizations, like FSRI, face. By having to constantly be fundraising to support their own programs that lift the community, Dan decided it was important to be involved in any way that he could.

Dan views helping the community and providing the necessary resources as an investment in people. He believes that if you invest in the right people and programs, you can reduce the amount of overall need in a community.  Dan feels about investing in people and supports time off for his employees to follow suit in their own philanthropy.

“Community matters,” Dan said. “As a Strategic Leader it is on me and my peers – all of you- to stand up and lead to create better, safer, healthier, and more robust communities for our families.”

Food insecurity becomes increasingly pressing with supply chain issues and rising prices. This Thanksgiving, Family Service of Rhode Island (FSRI), with the help of East Commerce Solutions, Inc., is stepping up to make sure no family goes without a meal to share.

On Thursday, November 17, Family Service of Rhode Island staff and volunteers distributed 360 turkeys to clients, provided by East Commerce Solutions, Inc. just in time for Thanksgiving. CEO Margaret Holland Duff says the generosity of East Commerce Solutions, Inc. will make a happier Thanksgiving for many Rhode Island families in need.

East Commerce Solutions owner Ed Medeiros expressed how important family is to him and his desire to be part of organizations that are making a difference in the community.

“People talk about making a difference, but you can’t talk the talk if you don’t walk the walk – and Family Service of RI seems to be doing that,” said Medeiros.

East Commerce Solutions, Inc., for the 9th year, continues its tradition of providing Thanksgiving meals to families in need statewide. The Medeiros said, this year, they will be providing over 4,000 turkeys and sides to families through non-profit organizations, such as FSRI.

According to the Medeiros, the number of turkeys requests increases every year, which means more and more families are struggling and the need now is more than ever. This annual turkey run initially started with feeding 2,000 people and has grown to 30,000 people, said Ed Medeiros.

East Commerce Solutions, Inc. orders turkeys to fill the requests each year without a cap. “The number is what people need,” he said. “I have a habit of not being able to say no.”

To the Medeiros, money is not a barrier when it comes to the number of turkeys ordered because their top concern is that all families get a nice Thanksgiving dinner without financial burden.

To companies who are inspired and want to give back to their community, Medeiros offers this advice.

“Find a cause. If you’re a business and you’re doing well, share it.”

The Medeiros’ say they contribute to over 27 nonprofit organizations a year with the annual Turkey Drive being their one big gesture to the community. Giving back to the community doesn’t have to be a big grand gesture, said Ed Medeiros.

“The Thanksgiving Turkey Drive didn’t start that way. It became that way,” he said. “We can be infectious in a good way.”

After a two-year virtual hiatus, we had over 500 guests join us on October 3, including so many Rhode Island government and business leaders, and raised over $270,000 for FSRI’s early childhood development programs. Just INCREDIBLE!

Thank you so much for your support! This community shows us time and time again that together we can do great things.

There’s still time to give!

Text ‘FSRI4Kids‘ to 44-321 or click here.

Ep. 20: Keeping Runaway & Homeless Youth Safe w/ The Basic Center Program

Children and families in our programs face significant challenges. We can often level the playing field so that children and their parents can achieve their potential. New backpacks promote self-esteem and excitement for children who otherwise may not have new supplies for the coming school year.

Help us make sure that Rhode Island’s children have what they need when they return to school in September!

How can you help?

• Make a donation by texting “BTS2022” to 44-321
  https://secure.givelively.org/donate/family-service-of-rhode-island/back-to-school
• Send school supplies on Amazon
  https://a.co/eUfPtqz
• Drop off school supplies to any Greco Automotive Group Dealership (in New England)
  https://www.griecocars.com/   ending August 24, 2022

If your business is interested in supporting our back-to-school initiative, send us a message!