Families have always worn a lot of hats, but lately they’ve added a bunch more: working to make ends meet and pay the bills, feeding the family, schooling the children, finding recreation time, being creative to keep kids entertained and engaged, being a good listener and counselor and making sure everyone stays healthy.

All this stuff is hard, draining their time and energy. They’re overwhelmed with no end in sight. Now more than ever our families need our support. At Families First, our mission is to strengthen families, and we have joined with others in this community to provide resources and support to get us through this, with United Way taking the lead as we move forward.

For Families First, the Rowan County United Way has played a leading role in our success for 25 years. In 1996, they partnered with us to expand our menu of services to include the family and we began exploring ways we could help. That included parenting classes, child development for young teen parents, supervised visits and court child care services for our fragile families struggling with domestic violence and child abuse and helping our little ones learn the social-emotional skills needed to have empathy and respect for one another while learning how to manage their feelings to support their own health and well-being.

The United Way has been by our side ever since, meeting the needs of our community. We couldn’t do what we do without them.

Families First is grateful for their partnership. We celebrate our 25th anniversary with our United Way partner and thank them for their compassion and commitment to our community. Now more than ever, our community needs the United Way. So join Families First in supporting the United Way campaign. Here’s to 25 years and still going strong. Thank you, United Way!

— Jeannie Sherrill

Salisbury