Family Fun Funds Foster Families

By Eliza Hallabeck

From a local artist gallery to different workshops, the Family Fun Farm Festival held at Sticks and Stones Farm on Sunday, October 9, offered many activities and options for eventgoers.

Admission to the event was $5 for adults and $3 for children and the day raised money and awareness for the Connecticut Association of Foster & Adoptive Families, Inc (CAFAP), a nonprofit organization providing services to foster and adoptive families in the state.

Working in conjunction with Sticks and Stones Farm, the event was organized by resident Rita Ghizzoni.

CAFAP provides support in the form of advocacy and outreach, liaisons to guide and teach families and coordinate community support groups, and training to help foster, adoptive, and relative caregivers prepare to raise children in Department of Children and Family care. CAFAP has also developed the Children’s Hope Fund, allowing supporters to sponsor dreams for Connecticut’s foster and adoptive families. A toll-free, confidential helpline operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Sticks and Stones is a working farm that harvests environmentally friendly moss and stone, and provides a space for rustic retreats, health-related workshops and classes, and celebrations.

Local businesses donated gift certificates and items for the teacup auction, and artists and craftspeople were on hand to demonstrate and sell original works.

About an hour after the event started Ms Ghizzoni said the turnout was already great, “So I think it is going to be pretty well received the rest of the day.”

She also said the day had something for everyone, including scavenger hunts for children and wilderness workshops focusing on survival.

“It’s for a great cause, CAFAP — Connecticut Association of Foster and Adoptive Parents,” said Ms Ghizzoni. “They do a lot of funding for all of our children’s dreams and the most important thing is we need to believe in them to fulfill their dreams. We decided on Sticks and Stones since it is a working nurturing farm that we thought it would be a good parallel with also nurturing our children.”

Maura Provenscher, director of outreach and retention for CAFAP, oversaw one of the entrance booths during the event.

“We’re welcoming quite a few of our families here today as well as the general public,” said Ms Provenscher.

Ms Provenscher also said the group lucked out with a beautiful day to match the beautiful setting.

Heather Lacasse, who helped organize the event with Ms Ghizzoni and also works for CAFAP, said along with the great food and massage offerings, families were also offered the chance to win door prizes, including Starbucks coffee, Staples gift cards, and a variety of other items.

“It seems to be going really well,” said Ms Lacasse.