Bright Beginnings Child Development Center: Events

Our children make the challenging work we do for homeless families just a little bit easier, and one of our favorite things is introducing new friends to these little friends and welcoming them to the Bright Beginnings family.We hope all of you will visit us soon for our Dream Booster Tour that will pack inspiration and information into 60 minutes through the stories of our children and their parents.We invite you to join us for this special tour if you have not visited us lately or you’re new to our family. Sign up today! We promise it’s something you’ll want to share with everyone you know.

There is much work to be done to prepare homeless infants, toddlers and preschoolers for kindergarten and to provide the comprehensive family-centered services that stabilize their families. And, there’s more room in our family!

Bright Beginnings’ Parent Auction on June 26 is our way of rewarding our most active and involved parents. Homeless parents will be able to “shop” for household, bathroom and kitchen supplies in a store created just for them. Our annual Parent Auction rewards the parents who are actively participating in their children’s education and making the positive choices that will stabilize their families, such as getting a GED, completing college courses, getting and keeping a job and taking advantage of our parenting training and informational workshops. Please help us reward their hard work by donating items from our wish list. Please call Heidi Bluming or Emma Kupferman at 202.842.9090 for more information.

Wish list items can be sent, delivered, dropped off or shipped directly to:

Emma Kupferman
Bright Beginnings, Inc.
128 M Street, NW
Washington, DC

Bright Beginnings' children incorporate more physical activity into their day with commonly-found items and creative activities. Join the fun by donating one or two items or all the items for a month. Our kids will really appreciate it! Call Heidi Bluming at 202.842.9090 for more information or to drop off your donations.

Thank you for enthusiastically supporting Bright Beginnings’ Annual 5K Race! Each registration, donation and sponsorship directly benefits homeless infants, toddlers and preschoolers and their families. Because of your support, young homeless children receive critical educational services and therapeutic support that prepares them for kindergarten and their parents receive necessary support, hope and a hand to stabilize their lives.

Race Results
Race Awards
Thank you sponsors!
See Race day pictures!

Did you know that children learn through play? We celebrated our children through POWER PLAY in April as part of our month-long celebration of the Week of the Young Child (April 22-28). Our powerful play included children’s music, books, dance, movement, flowers and fun!

Fannie Mae Help the Homeless Walkathon: Give thanks and give back!
November 19, 2011

Team Bright Beginnings brought greater visibility to homeless families with young children in our community by walking in Fannie Mae's Help the Homeless Walkathon on Saturday, November 19 on the National Mall. Our enthusiastic team of homeless parents, teachers, board members and staff represented the most vulnerable families in our community. Bright Beginnings is a proud beneficiary of the Help the Homeless Walkathon, which is the nation's largest fundraising effort focused on homelessness. Thank you to all who participated by walking, donating and sponsoring Bright Beginnings! We send out an extra special thank you to our sponsors: ATSC/APPIX, Legacy and the SunDial Foundation!

See photos from the event.

Community Helpers Program: Thank you for being part of our community!
October 1 - 31, 2011

During October, Bright Beginnings’ children learned about many exciting careers from our community helpers which included 2 firefighters, a police officer, banker, postal worker, personal trainer, florist and military nutritionist and pilot! Our children learned that a firefighter is there to help them if there’s a fire, a police officer helps children in an emergency, a postal worker helps a letter get to the right place, a banker works in a place that keeps our money safe, the nutritionist and personal trainer showed them how to keep their bodies healthy and strong, our florist demonstrated the smell of different flowers, and the military talked about the way they keep the country safe. Thank you to all the different community helpers that visited us, and for being part of our community! Please enjoy the photos!

The Bright Beginnings Family launched our 20th Anniversary Celebration on Capitol Hill on October 25, 2011 to celebrate two decades of preparing homeless children for kindergarten and getting their parents back on their feet. More than 2,100 children and their families have received the comprehensive education, social services and family-stabilizing services that made a measurable impact on their lives. All of us who are connected to Bright Beginnings are very proud of this important milestone and excited about the expansion plans that will take our nationally-regarded child development and family services to a second center in Ward 7. Even as we celebrate 20 years of measurable success in helping homeless children and their families, there is more to do. There are more children and more families who need us. Bright Beginnings will be there. We hope you will be too. Please take this opportunity to find new ways to connect with Bright Beginnings and new ways to support our work.

We’d like to thank the following Congressional sponsors and corporations for your support:

Congresswoman Karen Bass (CA-33)
Congressman G.K. Butterfield (NC-1)
Congressman André Carson (IN-7)
Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (NY-11)
Congressman James E. Clyburn (SC-6)
Congressman Danny K. Davis (IL-7)
Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-5)
Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. (IL-2)
Congressman Gregory Meeks (NY-6)
Congresswoman Terri Sewell (AL-7)
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-00)
Congressman Ed Perlmutter (CO-7)
Congressman Tim Ryan (OH-17)
Congresswoman Frederica S. Wilson (FL-17)
Congressman John Yarmuth(KY-3)

Workforce Week: Ready, Set, Work!
October 11-14, 2011

Bright Beginnings' Workforce Week and Job Fair successfully connected homeless parents to jobs and job training. More than 55 job seekers came out to interview with BB&T, Capital One, Central Parking, Excel Institute, HHS Hospitality Staffing Solutions and Safeway. We are pleased to report that some parents were hired on the spot! Please enjoy photos from Workforce Week.

Bright Beginnings’ Baby Shower with a Purpose celebrated new mothers and expecting mothers with a baby shower that combined traditional baby shower activities with an education component. For most of our homeless mothers, this was their only baby shower and opportunity to receive the many items they needed to take care of their new babies. During the shower, mothers also learned about healthy baby care, proper baby sleep techniques as well as baby and family nutrition.

Thank you for supporting our Parent Auction on June 28, 2011 with your unique and practical gifts and gift card donations that rewarded homeless parents who are making all the right moves to support their children and stabilize their families. More than 250 items and $250 in gift cards were donated to our Parent Auction this year. Homeless parents used the Parent Points they earned throughout the year to shop for toys as well as household, kitchen, bathroom and bedroom items and chose from many special food and entertainment gift cards donated from our extended community. Thank you for helping us create this special store for our families!
Check out our Parent Auction photo album.