2015 Signature Grant of the Year: All Our Kin

All Our Kin founders Jessica Sager (left) and Janna Wagner at the 20th Anniversary celebration. Photo by Gale Zucker Photography

For over a decade the Fund has proudly supported All Our Kin. The nonprofit's multi-faceted programs provide women with the business skills and educational efficacy to serve children and their parents while ultimately benefiting the entire community.

All Our Kin's Tool Kit Licensing Program alone creates approximately $12.5 million in annual tax revenue and generates an average of $7.4 million per year in benefits to the region. For every $1 spent on the Tool Kit Program, approximately $15-$20 is returned in terms of increased gross regional product. Such powerful outcomes have made All Our Kin the natural choice for the first Signature Grant, a 3-year commitment of $160,000 aimed at making a lasting impact on women and girls throughout Greater New Haven.

The grant enables All Our Kin to support more than 400 child care providers. The program they offer supports women entrepreneurs, allows parents to enter the workforce in pursuit of economic advancement and give moms peace of mind in knowing their children are learning in a safe, nurturing environment. In addition, the quality, hands-on care promoted by All Our Kin addresses the emotional, physical and developmental needs of children, a goal that benefits us all.

Maria "Pili" Carrillo who has run a home-based child care program in Westville since 2007 is one of All Our Kin's great successes. Like so many women-run businesses, "Pili's Day Care" was born of necessity fueled by passion. Maria had lost her job as an Elder Care Aide, and through the advice of a friend called All Our Kin for assistance in turning her love for children into a career.

Over the past eight years, Maria has utilized many of All Our Kin's resources including the comprehensive Tool Kit Licensing Program, one-on-one educational consultations, loan programs, a variety of workshops and annual conferences, and their 10-course business series. According to Maria, working with All Our Kin has been "very, very important because it helped me to realize that aside from being a director of early childhood education, I am the director of my business."

See all 2015 grants awarded by the Community Fund for Women & Girls.