We are sounding the alarm bell! The need for more foster homes has never been more crucial than at this present time for the children and teens involved in the state of Massachusetts’ child welfare. As of 2021, there are between 9,000 and 10,000 children and young adults in foster care in Massachusetts. Many of these children have nowhere to go as a result of the current deficit of foster homes and new foster parents. Read more

In the middle of the worst pandemic in a century, communities around the country are welcoming at least 70,000 Afghans to the United States. Our organizations, Ascentria Care Alliance and the International Institute of New England (IINE), expect to resettle more than 200 Afghans in the Granite State by the middle of February, nearly three times as many refugees as New Hampshire welcomed in all of last year.

The experiences of Afghan evacuees are a sobering reminder of the trauma refugees face when fleeing their home countries. In their evacuations, Afghans in our services left everything behind — homes, personal possessions, friends and family. They worry about loved ones living in a nation that is quickly becoming the world’s greatest humanitarian crisis.

There has been a groundswell of community support throughout New England to evacuate Afghan refugees and those granted Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) protection following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan.

We’re heartened by this support as we all see this tragedy playing out in real-time. Who among us didn’t feel the Afghans’ pain as we watched them clinging to the U.S. military transport plane trying to take off from Kabul Airport? We must take whatever action is needed to safely evacuate these people as quickly as possible. Ascentria Care Alliance and International Institute of New England (IINE) stand ready to assist in the effort as best we can.

For 16 years, seven days a week, six hours a day, Tracey Cintron worked as a caregiver for Jim Piet.

Piet has lived with cerebral palsy since birth when his umbilical cord coiled around his neck, leaving him unable to walk and his arms stiffly folded into his chest. Read more

Two years ago my friend Paul Scott and I wrote an op-ed urging our legislators to invest in the Choices for Independence (CFI) waiver. Paul was one of thousands of medically vulnerable people in New Hampshire, ages 18 to over 100, who qualify for nursing homes but choose to remain in their own homes.

Paul suffered a catastrophic injury many years ago and it was through the CFI waiver that he was able to remain at home. Despite our plea, CFI is currently failing people like Paul.