2024 Annual Report

CONTENTS

Annual Report

Mission

To build a community of strong,
healthy families who protect
and nurture children.

Diversity Statement

The Village’s commitment to diversity extends beyond our words.

Diversity fuels our mission.

We believe that we are stronger and better when we actively include diverse people and thought to guide our practices and engagement with others. Through our diversity we learn fundamental truths, discover opportunities to create a more inclusive society, and enact real change.

A MESSAGE FROM OUR BOARD CHAIR

Dear Friends,

My tenure as Chair of The Village’s board of directors may have just begun, but I have been connected to this organization for 60 years! I was adopted through The Village when I was an infant, and I’m grateful every day for my good fortune. The Village connected me to my incredible family, who not only provided me with much love, but also with countless opportunities that have helped me become the person I am today. So, it is an honor and a privilege to give back to this special organization as chairman of its board.

My parents always stressed that my “birth parents” must have loved me a great deal to make the very difficult choice to let me be adopted by a family who could take better care of me. Growing up with that explanation always made me feel fortunate and never abandoned.

I went away to college, enjoyed success in various jobs and entrepreneurial endeavors and eventually took over the Thomas Hooker Brewery.

Early in the brewery’s existence, we were looking for a non-profit to support, and we decided to donate to The Village. That marked the beginning of my new relationship with the organization: as a donor, volunteer and eventually, board member.

It has been gratifying to play a small role in The Village’s success. I get to work with an incredible group of dedicated board members and a brilliant executive management team who value innovation, collaboration and accountability.

We are all committed to ensuring that we use The Village’s resources efficiently and constantly search for ways to maximize impact. Last year we launched one of the state’s only urgent crisis centers for youth experiencing mental health emergencies. Whether it be access to primary medical care for Hartford residents, substance use counseling for young adults or our fatherhood program for dads who often grew up without one, the breadth of our services is ever expanding.

None of this would be possible without our donors, volunteers, auxilians, government and private funders. The Village has proven itself to be a good partner, and that reputation helps us galvanize unwavering support for our mission to build a community of strong, healthy families who protect and nurture children.

This work remains personal for me. We each have a story, a time when we needed help to realize our full potential. That is what The Village is all about; trust me, I know.

Curt Cameron, Board Chair

Dear Friends,

I am grateful to be the new president and CEO of The Village. When you lead an organization that has existed for more than two hundred years and is part of the fabric of Greater Hartford, it comes with certain responsibilities.

The Village must never be satisfied with doing the bare minimum for our clients. Our staff of more than 600 people is deeply mission driven, and when you talk to our employees you are likely to hear stories of how colleagues went above and beyond to help someone. The passion for our work is rooted in something simple and powerful: an ability to see the humanity in every client. When we do that, it’s easy to see their potential and unlock their resilience.

I learned a lot about this sense of community from my parents. They brought me to Hartford from Bogota, Colombia when I was six years old and created a home where everyone was welcome. The kitchen was always filled with relatives, friends and neighbors. We were not wealthy, but I understood that we had more than others, and that came with an obligation to share.

The Village is our collective kitchen table. We can’t solve every problem, but together we can nurture children, heal neighbors and build a healthier community. Success requires that we use our resources—from donors, auxilians, government contracts and corporate partners—efficiently and effectively to maximize our impact. At The Village we measure everything so we can improve outcomes. If a program’s performance is not meeting expectations, we find out why and make changes. High-performing programs get celebrated and scaled. We include a description of all our programs, along with client satisfaction and outcomes, in this annual report. I encourage you to review the material, scan the QR codes to listen to the testimonials and reach out to us if you have any questions.

Finally, the challenges facing our clients are often intergenerational. Real change requires The Village to form partnerships with other service providers. In the last year alone, we have strengthened our relationships with longstanding partners, like United Way and the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, while creating new connections with organizations including Hartford Promise, UConn and Dignity Grows. You can read more about our partnerships in the following pages.

I am honored to be on this mission with you.