Back-to-school season brings a lot of excitement, but for families, it can also bring a lot of stress.
There are new routines to establish, earlier wake-up times to manage, school clothes or uniforms to purchase, and long lists of supplies to secure. For many families, this is also the time for health checkups, school physicals, eye exams, and immunizations. Add in a child who is nervous about starting school, or a parent wondering how everyone will adjust to a new schedule, and the beginning of the school year can quickly feel overwhelming.
That is one reason you will find the Parenting Matters team at back-to-school events throughout our community.
This year, our staff participated in Bethel Baptist Church’s Day 4 Hope, Risen Lutheran Church’s Day 4 Hope, Oneco Elementary’s Open House, and MCR Health’s back-to-school event, among others. With a small but mighty team, that sometimes means dividing and conquering so we can be in several places and connect with as many families as possible.
For us, these events are about much more than setting up a table and handing out brochures.
They give us a chance to meet parents where they already are, have real conversations, answer questions, share resources, and make sure families know there is somewhere they can turn if parenting gets difficult during the school year. Sometimes a parent has an immediate question. Other times, the most important thing we can do is simply introduce ourselves and make a connection that they may remember weeks or months later.
That connection matters.
The first few weeks of school come with a great deal of community support and activity. Eventually, the backpacks have been distributed, the open houses are over, and the school year settles into its regular rhythm. But parenting challenges do not follow a back-to-school calendar.
A child may begin struggling with behavior or anxiety. Morning or bedtime routines may become a daily battle. A parent may receive a call from the school and not know what to do next. A family may realize their child needs additional educational support. Or a parent may simply reach a point where they could use some encouragement and practical ideas from someone who will listen.
We want families to know Parenting Matters is still here.
Our presence at community events is one of the ways those relationships begin. Each conversation helps make our programs a little more familiar and support a little easier to reach. It also helps our team better understand what parents are experiencing so we can continue responding to the needs we see in our community.
We are grateful to the schools, churches, health care providers, and community organizations that invite Parenting Matters to be part of these events. They give our team an opportunity to do what we believe is so important: show up, listen, connect, and make sure parents know they do not have to figure everything out on their own.
