General Resources
Family Economic Mobility Toolkit
The “Family Economic Mobility: Taking Charge of Your Future” toolkit offers families help to set financial goals and create action plans for tracking progress. The toolkit includes a series of videos and an online resource guide with links to agencies and support programs.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Administration for Children and Families provides the toolkit.
For more information, please contact PFCE@ecetta.info or (866) 763-6481.
Family Matters Parent Training and Information Center
Family Matters Parent Training and Information Center (Family Matters PTIC) empowers parents and professionals to achieve the strongest possible outcomes and enhance the quality of life for children and young adults with disabilities. Family Matters PTIC offers coaching, referral, parent-to-parent support, Educational Surrogate Parent training and more.
Family Matters PTIC services and programs include:
- A monthly event calendar highlighting webinars and training opportunities
- Self-advocacy resources
- Videos
- Educational coaching and support for families and self-advocates
Family Voices “My Language, My Care” Language Access Rights and Services Course
Family Voices’ “My Language, My Care” is a free online, plain language course to help increase awareness, understanding and use of language access rights and services for families whose preferred language is not English. The course is available in English, Spanish, Chinese and American Sign Language.
Family Voices’ My Language, My Care course will provide:
- An understanding of their rights under the law
- Information about interpreter confidentiality
- Tools to advocate for high-quality language access services in the healthcare setting
- A certificate of completion after finishing all six modules of the training course
- Access to a free toolkit with information from the course in English, Spanish and Chinese
For questions, contact Family Voices at (781) 674-7224 or use the online Contact Us form.
Fathering a Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing Child: An Onboarding Checklist for Dads
The Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Parent to Parent Committee developed a checklist written by fathers of children who are deaf or hard of hearing (D/HH) for dads or anyone who feels they fulfill this role in a child’s life.
“Fathering a Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing Child: An Onboarding Checklist for Dads” provides information and action steps to support and encourage fathers to take an active role in every aspect of their child’s life from the start. The guide shares information from a dad’s perspective on topics including:
- The ” new dad” learning curve
- Language and communication
- School and legal rights
- Well-being
Together, Fifth Street Renaissance/Springfield AIDS Resource Association (SARA Center) in Springfield assists individuals and families in difficult situations in reclaiming their self-sufficiency and well-being. It provides resources, transitional housing, opportunities to develop job skills and education, and help in securing employment. The organization also helps individuals diagnosed with HIV/AIDS find affordable housing, medical assistance and counseling.
Fifth Street Renaissance/SARA Center programs include:
- Homeless prevention – provides rental, utility and support services to prevent homelessness
- Housing programs – provide safe housing to help individuals and families achieve stability and independence
- Youth service program – supports vulnerable youth as they transition from foster care to independence
For more information, call (217) 544-5040 or email info@fsr-sara.org.
The American Medical Association (AMA)’s Find a Doctor allows people to search a database of practicing physicians across the United States. Users can enter a physician’s name (first, last, or both) and city/state name or ZIP code to find general information about individual physicians in 650 metropolitan regions across all fifty states.
Over 500,000 physicians, AMA members and non-members alike, from both allopathic (M.D.) and osteopathic (D.O.) degree tracks are represented in the Find a Doctor platform.
The HealthyChildren.org website provides a tool to search for an American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) member pediatrician, pediatric sub-specialist or pediatric surgical specialist. Click on the “Find a Pediatrician or Pediatric Specialist Tool” to start looking.
To use this tool and others, visit HealthyChildren.org’s registration page to create an account.
Find Food – We Got You Illinois
The We Got You Illinois website’s Find Food mapping tool provides help in locating free groceries, meal programs and other support programs throughout Illinois. Map filters can also help you find organizations that are open on a day that suits your schedule best.
You can also explore the We Got You Illinois website to learn more about:
Find Food IL Community Food Map
Find Food IL is a community food map that provides a list of places offering free food or meals in your community. You can find food pantries, stores and markets that accept SNAP/LINK or WIC coupons, and more resources that are close to you.
The map is available in English, Spanish and French.
Find Help Southern Illinois connects people to area programs and services, including:
- Food and basic needs, such as food pantries, baby supplies, clothing and home goods
- Housing and shelter options
- Healthcare services, including medical, dental and vision care and transportation to health care
- Addition and recovery support
- Mental well-being services
- Financial assistance for child care, transportation, medical supplies and more
- Use the search filter to find the help you need in your community—sort by “closest” to receive the local information first
- Education and employment programs
- Legal assistance
The resource hub is an initiative of Southern Illinois Healthcare, Healthy Southern Illinois Delta Network and the Southern Illinois Coalition for Children and Families. The hub also receives support from the McKinney Vento Program for the Homeless Region V, Carbondale Elementary School District 95, Herrin Community Unit School District 4 Family Outreach Program, and the Carbondale Community Cabinet for Children and Youth with funding provided by Birth to Five Illinois.