The upcoming holidays can challenge many families experiencing homelessness or temporary housing. The expected joy of the holiday season can be overshadowed by food insecurity and financial hardship. McKinney-Vento Liaisons go above and beyond, daily, for families in their community experiencing temporary housing. With the holidays coming up, many liaisons and community members take the extra step to ensure families in their community are shown care.
One such liaison, Deborah Bernadino out of Long Beach City, has had a long-standing tradition of helping her families during the holiday season. Quick to credit the work of the full school team and administration, Deborah shared ways she connects with her families while ensuring they have access to everyday necessities and holiday goods. Here are key Holiday takeaways from our team’s first “Interview with a Liaison”:
Start early and grow community partnerships.
Reach out to local churches, food banks, and community resources to find out both how they help and what they need to be successful.
As you build relationships, call ahead of time to see which non-profit is doing what each season. Which ones need food or other supplies?
To help the non-profit organizations that will help your students, offer to host a food drive or volunteer packing boxes.
It is about building good community relationships - being a part of the community in which you live and work.
Instead of assuming you know what to give your families for the holiday season, or giving each family the same thing, use this as an opportunity to reach out to each family and ask them what they need.
If you are in communication early enough, this gives you the chance to collaborate with each non-profit or community resource to gather the specifically requested items.
Each McKinney-Vento family is different and may have specific family traditions they’d like to uphold or a relative's house they visit.
They may or may not have an oven and would prefer alternative forms of food rather than a frozen turkey or ham. Some community organizations offer frozen turkeys but with no way to cook them while in temporary housing, it may not be a practical holiday gift. However, a district liaison or other community member may be willing to cook and deliver the turkey. Deborah is always looking for creative ways to support families and make sure they feel cared for, especially during the holiday season. This is a great example of how a district liaison building community relationships can positively impact families.
Alternatively, some families may want to bring a side dish or a baked good to a friend or relative’s house. For example, a family may want to bring a cake mix to a relative’s house so they can all bake together. If you know this in advance, you can work with a food pantry to get a cake mix.
Personally deliver these items to the family, or offer pickup options.
This gives people choice and removes the stigma of children walking home with non-perishables. Saying “I’ll meet you somewhere” helps to remove the stigma of need and may offer additional insight into housing situations.
Deborah shared a few additional recommendations with our NYS TEACHS team, above and beyond holiday food, including:
When talking with families - ask for clothing sizes for upcoming events (coats, holiday outfits, etc). Many people from the community often reach out and ask how they can support families experiencing temporary housing. Those who want to be generous can either shop for things to gift with specific sizes in mind or give gift cards.
Some communities have started a “Community Closet” (open to all families regardless of MV status) that encourages the trading/swapping of certain clothing items that no longer fit for the season. This can include coats, seasonal dress-up items, etc. On specific days of the year, families can bring something that no longer fits and trade it for something that does.
Communicate with families in the way they communicate. While schools will often email home, families don’t always check email. Deborah has found that texting with families often yields better communication and relationships.
Write Thank-You Notes to local community agencies, school staff, and others who offer to generously support families in need. A handwritten note can go a long way in expressing gratitude.
Keep in consistent communication with colleagues. Collaboration with colleagues and community partners is key to the success of this level of support.
Maintain a High School pantry that’s stocked by generous staff and community members that allows high school students to get a snack, free of charge, when one is needed.
For both holiday and non-holiday-related food suggestions, Deborah shared this list as a starting point for district liaisons looking for suggestions based on what she’s been asked for in the past:
Frozen dinners
Ramen noodles
Lunchables
Cold cuts of meat
Bread
Peanut butter and jelly
Snacks
Protein bars
Snacks to send to school
Deborah noted at the beginning of the interview that she has a team of staff and administrators who are highly supportive of the work being done to ensure McKinney-Vento families receive care while maintaining dignity and respect. Deborah’s care for these families stems from empathy and a belief that “We could all be in this situation and that’s why I do what I do. We are all only one situation away from being in a hard place.” Deborah, as with many of McKinney-Veno district liaisons, views her role as “coming up with creative ways to solve problems.”
The NCHE brief on Access to Food is also a great resource for all liaisons to review as we work to navigate the upcoming holiday season. Thank you to all McKinney-Vento District Liaisons for being the “boots on the ground” and ensuring families experiencing homelessness and temporary housing are cared for during this holiday season.
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