Family Matters
"Family Matters" is a premier program that supports families of children with serious health conditions.  It provides comprehensive support services for families of infants and young children who are infected/affected by HIV/AIDS, or have been perinatally exposed to a dangerous drug by a substance abusing and/or HIV/AIDS infected mother.  Support comes in the form of monthly support group meetings, and quality respite actives (i.e. educational and therapeutic sessions, trips, outings, annual retreat). 
 
Support group meetings are held on the third Saturday and second Friday of every month, and cover a range of relevant topics including caregivers legal rights, positive parenting techniques, and money management. A monthly newsletter provides clients information on topics of interest, resources in the community, and upcoming meetings and events. Family Matters also provides our clients with a voice, as they serve as advocates for relative caregivers and have participated in a number of rallies: including The National Grand Rally for Grandparents and other Relatives Raising Children in Washington, DC.
Family Testimonial
 
Mom: "LIGHT treated us like a family and provided us the means to get what other agencies couldn’t get us. Without LIGHT, I would be in the gutter. They helped me up."
Son: Ms. Debbie has been a good teacher. I love playing with the teachers and getting to know the other kids.
Grandmom: LIGHT gave us moral support and treated us like a family when other agencies were not willing to do so. I enjoy getting together with other grandparents and discussing whatever issues are going on in our families.
 
Without LIGHT we could have gone down a somewhat dark road.
Additional Programming
Johnson Square also provides comprehensive services for the families of children including the following programs:
  • Isn't She Luvly
  • Phenomenal Women
  • Youth Matters
  • A Step Beyond Outreach