Manchester Community Health Center-Child Health Services
Child Health Services at Manchester Community Health Center (CHS/MCHC) provides a medical home for underserved and uninsured children and families living in the Greater Manchester, NH area. CHS/MCHC provides accessible comprehensive primary medical care, psychosocial support services, and case management in areas including basic needs, mental health, crisis services, and educational/ vocational needs. CHS/MCHC collaborates with community partners to expand our reach and to support a community wide approach to improving the well-being of children and families in the greater Manchester area. Manchester, with a population of over 110,000, is the largest community in Northern New England. It is also where the largest proportion of the state’s low-income families live. Some families have lived and worked in this community for generations; others are newcomers to the region and to the country. A growing number are racial and ethnic minorities. Compared to the rest of the state, Manchester has a larger proportion of its residents living in poverty, and this number is growing rapidly. In some of Manchester’s center city census tracts, over 35% of children are living in poverty. A total of 49.6% of Manchester’s children under 18 years old are estimated to live below 200% of poverty. (Source: City of Manchester Health Department; U.S Census American Community Survey 2009). Child Health Services at Manchester Community Health Center serves a diverse group of families including refugee and immigrant families from many parts of the world. Almost 50% of the families served at CHS don’t speak English as their first language. Almost 75% of the mothers of children served at CHS don’t have a high school education. The majority of families served at CHS live at or below 100% of the federal poverty level. CHS is committed to providing high quality, comprehensive care to the families we serve.
VISTA will become oriented to CHS MCHC, our family support and enrichment programs and our current staff and volunteers. VISTA will develop a year plan for creating and /or expanding various programs to enrich the lives of families served at CHS. VISTA will increase volunteer capacity and will work to maintain this higher level of volunteer participation in order to enhance programming. The volunteer program coordinator will recruit and maintain volunteers from the local community including local colleges and universities to sustain the family support and enrichment programs. VISTA will work to expand the family enrichment food pantry program throughout the other Manchester Community Health Center locations.
For more information about AmeriCorps, visit www.nationalservice.gov.
For more information about the FIT VISTA Program visit www.fitnh.org/vista.
Families in Transition-New Horizons (FIT-NH), a nonprofit organization located in Manchester, Concord and Dover, New Hampshire, was founded in 1991 in response to the growing number of homeless individuals and families in the greater Manchester area and throughout the state. Since its inception, FIT has been committed to providing only the most innovative, and effective interventions specifically designed to help homeless individuals and families reach beyond the cycle of homelessness to lead healthy and successful lives. Our belief is that having a home is a basic human right and is fundamental to becoming an engaged and contributing member of our community.