Success Stories

About five years ago, my wife and I wanted to find a pre-school that would require parent's involvement and that's how Family Connections came across.

Family Connections has made a difference in making us realize how important it is to develop the habit of reading at an early age and as a result, my oldest boy now 8 years old, is attending one of the best elementary schools in the Redwood City School District.

Family Connections has laid the foundation to a bright future for my kids and opened the doors for me to reach other kids in the community and now I serve as one of the members of the school site council of one the local schools in Redwood City.

I want to say Thank you to the staff of Family Connections for developing such a good program; but most of all, Thank You to the Sponsors for planting a seed in our next generation, our future leaders.

Miguel Alvarado, father of 3 boys

Good morning every one, my name is Susana Aguilar and I have the honor to represent the parents and children at Belle Haven that are graduating today. Thanks everyone for being here, sharing with us the first victory from our children and one more year for the parents who are going to continue in the program.

At Family Connections our children have a great opportunity to be developing their skills and little by little they are going to be the actors in their own destiny. When we began at Family Connections the children and parents were feeling shy, scared and not comfortable but, when the days went on, we began feeling the warmth and support every day.

Thanks to Renee Zimmerman, the director of the program. She is a hard working person and she has a big responsibility to be in front of us raising money from foundations, associations, schools and the private sector. She is in different places during the mornings, evening and nights making possible this program year by year and giving support to our families.

Thanks to Debbie Denton, the volunteer coordinator, she is always there "behind the curtains" giving her time and effort with a big smile. Thanks to all the volunteers who help, they are working not only from duty but with warmth.

To Angela and Ruth, thanks from the heart, our children love you and parents need your advice. You directly contribute to the progress of our kids. You help the kids whenever they need you and teach them knowledge and values and you treat them with respect and love, for everything you do, thanks a lot.

Also, thanks to all the families, we are important and make this program possible keeping united and giving the best of who we are. We are the first teachers in the life of our children, let's learn to enjoy and love this trip toward their education to have a better life. At last, today we want to say to everyone in this innovative program called Family Connections, 'You have done a great job!'

Belle Haven Parent Susana Aguilar at our 2004 Graduation ceremony

My name is Paul Danny Lopez. I'm writing this letter with the goal that the program Family Connections will earn some recognition for their excellent work with the kids that attend, including my three year old son Paul and my daughter Jade, six months of age. Their effort to improve the quality of life and education of the children that attend is awesome. Also, their effort of helping parents to become more aware and more prepared to deal with the situations that will rise during this developing stage of our children's lives is excellent, and it should be recognized by our community and the city of Menlo Park. Programs such as this one, help bring our community closer and are essential for our childrens' future. Prior to attending Family Connections, my son Paul had difficulties paying attention, which made it very difficult when it came to teaching him new subjects. The change that he has gone thru during the time that he has been attending Family Connections is very noticeable and a very positive one. He has learned how to interact better with other children and how to follow directions better. Going to school on Saturday for him is a very exciting activity. We're very happy with that because him enjoying school is essential to his performance. People learn better when they enjoy what they are learning and many studies show that good attitudes toward learning bring better results. This community needs programs like this one to help the overall quality of life. This part of the community of Menlo Park should not be neglected of these programs. The children of this part of the community need more intellectual stimulation; encouragement to be successful in life. One of the main problems is that some parents don't know how to guide their children to achieve this goal, because they themselves did not get the proper education or encouragement that this program offers. Thank you again for the opportunity that you have given my children.

Parent Paul Danny Lopez