Page 12 - Head Start Annual Report 2021-2022

EARLY IN THE and women with children under
PANDEMIC
Hugo walked into our Special
Supplemental Nutrition Program
for Women, Infants, and Children
(WIC) office in Central Falls. A dad
of four young children, including
a newborn, Hugo had lost his wife
to COVID-19. He was grief-stricken
and overwhelmed with all his new
responsibilities. He had lost his job
in the service industry and had no
idea how he would manage. The WIC
office in Central Falls was one of only
a few places to access in-person ser-
vices in the community.
“Our WIC team immediately sprang
into action on Hugo’s behalf,” says
Margaret Tremblay, Head Start/WIC
Nutrition Supervisor. “We enrolled
his children under five in WIC and
linked Hugo to our family advocates
who arranged to deliver free home
meals to his family. We were able to
get him store gift cards for diapers
and other necessities through our
Emergency Crisis Fund. Every time
he received something, he cried
with thankfulness.”
Our WIC program provides a lifeline
to low-income pregnant women,
[ 12 ] INNO VAT ION + T E A M W OR K = S T R ONG FA MIL IE S
we were all-virtual, getting required
client health data took lots of
five. Before COVID struck, the Chil-
dren’s Friend WIC program served research, phone calls, faxes, scans,
and repeat calls to doctor’s offices
over 6,000 women, infants, and
children a year. Although participa- and other sources. Much more time
tion in WIC dropped nationwide due than in-person visits,” says Lucia.
to the challenges of the pandemic, Even simple check-ins to support
our program maintained its level of clients were plagued with challenges.
service through innovation, motiva- There were frequent dropped calls
tion, collaboration, and just a lot of and bad connections. “We tried
plain hard work. different ways to communicate to
“During the first few months of the find the best solutions for each client.
pandemic, WIC was one of the only But trying to show a new mother
Children’s Friend programs that was how to breastfeed was impossible
open for in-person visits,” explains over the phone or zoom!” Margaret
Lucia Santiago, Director of Nutrition- explained. So they worked with the
al Services. Through WIC, caregivers agency’s Facilities team to set up
receive critical nutrition education, a breastfeeding training center in
vouchers for nutritious foods, breast- one of the agency’s buildings, using
feeding education, screening and re-
ferrals to other needed services, and, curtains for privacy.
as needed, special formulas for their In September of 2021, WIC was able to
babies. “As a national WIC require- re-open four sites to in-person visits.
ment, we need to collect the height, “That was our best day,” reflects
weight, and blood samples from Margaret. “We were all missing the joy
enrolled parents and their children so of actually seeing the kids. That’s what
that we can track and tailor their nu- motivates us. That filled the deep wells
tritional care. In the first few months we all felt during isolation.”
of the pandemic, with a staff of only
ten in two of our normally five sites,
we were able to see WIC participants
from all of our sites.”
Staff and clients persevered through
program changes, from in-person, to
all virtual, and eventually to hybrid
in-person/virtual; multiple location
changes for WIC staff; and plenty
of headaches for everyone. “When