Crisco, DCF chief underscore importance of families

HARTFORD – State Senator Joseph J. Crisco, Jr., D-Woodbridge, and state Department of Children and Families Commissioner Joette Katz today convened a Family Day press conference to underscore the intrinsic value of Connecticut families, the state’s ‘greatest resource,’ according to the Family Day Web site.

Family Day events began in 1997 as a result of Crisco’s legislation that year, based upon an essay contest held in his district.

Family Day promotes strong families because they, in turn, ‘give children their best chance to achieve holistic well-being… learning in and out of school, developing special talents, and having opportunities to give back to the community.’

“When we reviewed the submitted essays in 1996 the remarkably apparent trend was that most students believed Connecticut would be a better place to live and work if families were to simply spend more time together,” Crisco said.
“Our state’s annual series of Family Day events grew from that simple wish and an acknowledgment by legislators that Connecticut families, without definition and regardless of their individual configuration, are the building blocks upon which healthy communities are built statewide.”

“The Department of Children and Families has undergone a transformation that at its core is premised on the belief that families hold the answers to challenges facing Connecticut’s children – we no longer view families as the cause for the challenges as many states have by responding with investigations and removals,” Katz said.
“DCF has implemented a Strengthening Families Practice Model that has changed our relationship with families to support family strengths.”

“This demonstrates that even for children with the most challenging set of circumstances, their families offer answers in the vast majority of instances,” Katz added. “These reforms and others have had a huge impact for individual children and for the state overall.” 

At today’s event Crisco and Katz also presented an award and citation to the winner of this year’s Family Day poster contest, 14-year old Yarisel Santos, who is an adopted member of a Meriden family.


This is a press release from Crisco's office.