October 11, 2002

OCTOBER PARENT EDUCATION MEETING PLANNED

Iowa Lakes Community College has announced the continuation of a grant from Prevent Child Abuse Iowa to provide Parent Education for Emmet County.  The grant, in its fifth year at Iowa Lakes, will provide free, once-a-month family education workshops for parents (custodial and noncustodial), foster parents, grandparents, teachers, child care providers, and other community members interested in the well-being of infants, children and teens. 

The Tuesday, Oct. 15, workshops will be held at Demoney Elementary School, 109 South 17^th Street, Estherville.  Two topics will be offered during the evening, with a light meal provided between the sessions.  The first session is 5:30 - 6:30 p.m., the light meal is served 6:30 – 7 p.m., and the second session is 7 – 8 p.m.  Participants can attend one or both of the sessions.  Free childcare and Hispanic translation will be provided. 

Workshop topics for the evening will be ‘Family Fire Safety’ with Clint Howard as presenter, and ‘Identifying and Building Healthy Family Relationships’ with Susan Reiter and Carolina Greene from CAASA as the presenters. 

Those attending the Fire Safety workshop will gain the newest information on fire prevention in the home and how to effectively educate children of all ages about the dangers of fire.  Those attending the Healthy Family Relationships workshop will gain a better perspective on violence in the family and specific steps in rebuilding family strengths. 

Future topics for this fall’s Parent Education workshops include: November 12^th: Good Eats and Tasty Treats for the Holidays and Selecting Violence-Free Gifts for Children; December 10^th: Make-It and Take-It (Seasonal Decorations and Gifts). 

Questions may be directed to Linda Wiegman, Parent Education Coordinator, 712-362-7926 or 1-800-242-5106.