News & Events

Each year, NAFI recognizes and celebrates employees for the outstanding work they do in providing the highest level of innovative human and social services to individuals and families. Lynn Bishop, Executive Director of NAFI operations in Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York, recently announced this year’s award winners. (Also see the stories on the Rhode Island winners and […]

Editor’s Note: Lynn Bishop, Executive Director of NAFI Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York, shared this end of the year holiday message with colleagues, and we would like to share it with you. Wishing everyone a safe, healthy, and joyful holidays and a hopeful 2023! Seasons Greetings! As 2022 comes to a close, it is […]

NAFI’s foster care program, the Professional Parent Program (PPP) was the agency’s first program to open its doors in the state of Connecticut in 1994. PPP began by serving youth out of the old Long Lane School in Middletown, part of the state juvenile justice system. The goal was to deinstitutionalize youth by taking them […]

NAFI Connecticut, Inc. has been awarded a Top Workplaces 2022 honor by The Hearst Connecticut Top Workplaces. The list of winners was announced Sept. 25 and marks the seventh consecutive year of Top Workplaces honors from either Hearst, The Hartford Courant, or both. Hearst also honored NAFI CT in 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2021. The Courant […]

NAFI Connecticut Inc.’s Linking Youth to Natural Communities (LYNC) program participated in a six-week summer work initiative administered by the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). The Willimantic-based LYNC program provides services for court-involved youth and their families with a focus on making sustainable behavioral changes through evidence-based and informed services such as […]

Leíla Zureiqi Connor, Assistant Program Director of MST programs for NAFI Connecticut, Inc., traveled to Lyon, France, in early July to give a presentation at the 37th International Congress on Law and Mental Health about the MST-EA model pioneered by NAFI CT. The July 3-8 conference, presented under the auspices of the International Academy of […]

MST-EA Clinical Supervisor Amanda Jacobs left NAFI Connecticut Inc. in June for a new opportunity as an MST Expert with Advanced Behavioral Health, Inc. She had arrived nearly 14 years ago while still a graduate student, joining our Middletown team as a MST program clinician and quickly developing a passion for community-based therapy. Just shy […]

The NAFI Connecticut, Inc., NAFI Rhode Island, and NAFI New York community recently honored the 2021 Spirit of the Community Award winners as part of a virtual Town Hall meeting. Joseph Matcham, a foster care Independent Living Specialist for NAFI NY, received a Spirit of the Community Award “for all that we love about you.” […]

Editor’s Note: Lynn Bishop, Executive Director of NAFI Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York, shared this end of the year holiday message with colleagues, and we would like to share it with you. Wishing everyone a safe, healthy, and joyful holidays and a hopeful 2022! Dear colleagues of NAFI Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York: […]

Each year, NAFI recognizes and celebrates employees for the outstanding work they do in providing the highest level of innovative human and social services to individuals and families. Lynn Bishop, Executive Director of NAFI operations in Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York, recently announced this year’s award winners. (Also see the stories on the Rhode Island winners and […]

NAFI Connecticut, Inc. once again has been named to the state’s Top Workplaces list by Hearst Connecticut Media. The 2021 list was announced in a Sept. 26 special section. This year marks the sixth consecutive year of Top Workplaces honors for NAFI CT from either Hearst, The Hartford Courant, or both. Hearst also honored NAFI CT in 2016, […]

NAFI Connecticut, Inc., whose leadership also guides operations in Rhode Island and New York, has been buoyed by nearly $212,000 in recent grants, some resulting from rigorous application processes and others simply arriving as a surprise. The grants include: $100,000 from the Rhode Island Foundation to support the COVID-related telehealth initiative $56,884 from The Champlin Foundation to purchase generators […]

NAFI Connecticut, Inc.‘s Foster Care Services Division proudly announces being recognized in the 2021 Change-Makers Report, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s third annual report highlighting 119 child welfare agencies across the country that have worked with the HRC Foundation’s All Children – All Families (ACAF) program to improve the services they provide to the LGBTQ+ community, including children in […]

When Lisseth Jurado Quiroga arrived at NAFI Connecticut, Inc. fresh out of graduate school at age 24 she possessed the “I’m going to save the world” enthusiasm of youth.  As a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), she has been doing just that for individuals in need over the past seven years, and now Lisseth is moving on […]

Katie Ryan might have spent her career in education as an English teacher, but she felt a calling to pursue what some would consider a tougher path—one with the potential to dramatically reshape troubled young lives.  After working as an English teacher in New Haven and Hamden public schools for nearly a decade, including serving […]

NAFI Connecticut’s MST (Multisystemic Therapy®) team in Middletown has been honored by MST Services with MST Sustained Excellence awards for adherence to the model by the therapists. Team Supervisor Emily Tyson was given the Outstanding Supervisor Award for Team Adherence, and the full team, including Michelle Posada and Nicole Marotta, won the Sustained Excellence Award for Team Adherence. MST Services developed the […]

NAFI Connecticut Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) Melissa “Mia” Gaudet has been honored by MST Services with the Whatever it Takes Award for the first quarter of 2021. MST Services developed the Multisystemic Therapy® approach to transforming the lives of troubled youth and their families, and partners with provider organizations like NAFI to use MST to treat at-risk youth, while […]

NAFI Connecticut, Inc., has partnered with the mission driven technology company Binti to launch a simple online application process for prospective foster parents. “Binti builds modern software with the goal of helping every child have a family,” the company website explains. “400,000 children are currently in foster care in the U.S. and millions are in orphanages around the […]

Has your anxiety level been higher than normal lately? Are your children showing signs of anxiety based on the restrictions and changes with school, sports, and social situations? Is the COVID-19 pandemic or the prospect of returning to normal keeping you up at night, affecting your appetite, or simply diminishing your normal equilibrium and peace […]

In early December, 14-year-old Nilian underwent a kidney transplant at Hartford Hospital. The surgery went well, the recovery even better, and the story behind Nilian’s adoptive family and her journey from a dire situation to new hope and possibilities is as inspiring as her medical transformation. It has been a team effort that includes the […]

 NAFI celebrates the amazing work its employees do for their communities in an awards ceremony each year recognizing those who go above and beyond the call of duty. This year, the ceremony had to be conducted remotely due to COVID-19 restrictions. NAFI’s Normative Community Approach creates a culture where people work together to achieve […]

Dear NAFI/NFI staff and family: As a very challenging 2020 comes to an end, let our holiday season be filled with gratitude for the extraordinary commitment and work you have done to ensure the wellbeing of consumers — and each other. You have taken on the added demands of the pandemic in ways that we couldn’t […]

Editor’s Note: Lynn Bishop, Executive Director of NAFI Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York, shared the following end of the year holiday message with colleagues, and we would like to share it with you. Wishing everyone a safe, healthy, and joyful holidays and a hopeful and prosperous 2021!   Dear colleagues of NAFI Connecticut, Rhode […]

The young women in NAFI Connecticut’s residential programs at the Touchstone Campus in Litchfield are writing a recipe for finding new sweetness in life by brightening the lives of other youth facing challenges. As part of NAFI CT’s partnership with the new Connecticut chapter of the national nonprofit Cake4Kids, the young women at Touchstone hope […]

NAFI staff members in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York have a tradition of sharing “gratitude grams” with one another each year during the Thanksgiving season. We highlight the messages of appreciation on social media, including the NAFI CT Facebook page, and this year we began sharing some of them on the website, too. Here’s the […]

Carnevale Project Turkey has been a holiday tradition for nearly 30 years and NAFI staff and volunteers in Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New York navigated the challenges of COVID-19 this year to make sure families received the extra boost they needed to make the holiday special. In Rhode Island, where Carnevale Project Turkey originated, NAFI […]

Each year, during the Thanksgiving season, we invite our employees to share “gratitude grams” with one another. These messages of appreciation provide a glimpse into the incredible support and commitment our employees demonstrate all year long in carrying out the vital and vibrant human services mission of the NAFI operations in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and […]

  A week after NAFI CT Executive Director Lynn Bishop hosted an October event in which Gov. Ned Lamont and State Department of Children and Families Commissioner Vannessa Dorantes emphasized the vital role of nonprofits during the COVID-19 pandemic—especially foster families—the Governor announced $1 million in supplemental aid to support foster parents. In her role as President […]

  Gov. Ned Lamont and state officials held a roundtable meeting Oct. 16 with members of the Children’s League of Connecticut (CLOC) to discuss challenges nonprofit service providers face amid COVID-19, followed by a news conference to acknowledge and thank the unsung heroes who work tirelessly to meet the needs of foster children and other young […]

NAFI Connecticut Inc. has been honored as one of Connecticut’s Top Workplaces by both The Hartford Courant and Hearst Connecticut Media Group. This is the fifth consecutive year the Courant has singled out NAFI CT for fostering one of the state’s best work environments. Award-winning companies and organizations are chosen solely based on employee feedback […]

NAFI CT Executive Director Lynn Bishop has been appointed President of the Children’s League of Connecticut (CLOC). CLOC is composed of leaders from 11 nonprofits devoted to a shared mission of advocating for the best interests of children and families, including proper care of children and young adults with behavioral health challenges or developmental disabilities. […]

Dear NAFI/NFI Family, Friends and Board members, The nation was rocked and deeply saddened by the cruel killing of George Floyd by four Minneapolis police officers last week. We know that the horror of this senseless act speaks to the work ahead that needs to be done to confront and counter racism and injustice. It […]

Alyssa Bomster was out with friends in November 2017 when a police stop involving an older friend driving without a license triggered her grief over the death of her cousin/best friend a day earlier. She had been drinking and the combination led her to confront police, resulting in her arrest for breach of peace. It […]

As we navigate the crisis created by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, it’s vitally  important to stay connected, to create a sense of unity even amid the challenges of social distancing—and to interact in online forums like this one as a community of compassionate, caring citizens with the common goal of making the world around us […]

  The 2019 NAFI CT Spirit of the Community Program Award was given to a pioneering program designed to reduce recidivism for transitional age youth (ages 17-20) who have both a recent history of criminal involvement and mental health challenges. “We are wholeheartedly excited and appreciative for this recognition of MST – TAY,” NAFI CT […]

  Abigail Okarmus, a Quality Assurance Coordinator with NAFI CT, received the Spirit of the Community award for Connecticut at the North American Family Institute’s recent annual conference. She was honored in part for her success in growing the NAFI CT outpatient clinic in Willimantic, which provides psychiatric and clinical counseling to children and adolescents […]

Only 60 Connecticut companies and organizations won 2019 Top Workplaces awards from The Hartford Courant and NAFI Connecticut Inc. is one of them—for a fourth consecutive year. “Being recognized as a Top Workplace for a fourth year in a row is very gratifying,” said Lynn Bishop, Executive Director for NAFI CT, the Farmington-based nonprofit organization […]

  Stacey Shaia, LCSW, clinical director of NAFI CT’s Outpatient Clinic in Willimantic, CT, has been honored with the 2019 Clinical Social Worker of the Year Award from the Connecticut Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers (NASW). “The Clinical Social Worker of the Year award is given annually to a clinical social worker […]

NAFI CT is pleased to announce its newest program, Linking Youth to Natural Communities (LYNC). LYNC is a center-based program for court-involved youth and their families. LYNC staff will work with organizations local to the youth’s natural community to address the youth’s and family’s needs as well as provide an array of evidence-based and evidenced […]

*Please note, tickets purchased online will be distributed at the door on the night of the event. Wine and Beer Tasting Regular Ticket $35.00 USDDesignated Driver $25.00 USD

We are pleased to share that NAFI CT foster parent, Sarah Hernandez, was recently recognized by a local news station for being a “Super Mom.” Sarah and her husband Jeremy were recently named NAFI CT Foster Parents of the Year. We are so grateful that the Hernandez family has opened their hearts and home to […]

We are very proud to announce that NAFI Connecticut, Inc. has been reaccredited by the Council on Accreditation. Reaccreditation is a tremendous achievement that demonstrates that our organization is recognized as a provider that continues to successfully implement high performance standards and, as such, is delivering the highest quality services to all of its stakeholders. […]

Farmington, CT – NAFI Connecticut, Inc. has been awarded a 2017 Top Workplaces honor by The Connecticut Post. The Top Workplaces lists are based solely on the results of an employee feedback survey administered by Energage, LLC, a leading research firm that specializes in organizational health and workplace improvement. Several aspects of workplace culture were […]

Farmington, CT – NAFI Connecticut, Inc. has been awarded a 2017 Top Workplaces honor by The Hartford Courant. The Top Workplaces lists are based solely on the results of an employee feedback survey administered by Energage, LLC, a leading research firm that specializes in organizational health and workplace improvement. Several aspects of workplace culture were […]

*Please note, tickets purchased online will be distributed at the door on the night of the event.  Wine and Beer Tasting Regular Ticket $35.00 USDDesignated Driver $25.00 USD

Please join us on September 29, 2017 for the Second Annual NAFI Connecticut, Inc. The Spirit of Giving Wine & Beer Tasting Event. All proceeds benefit the NAFI CT/Rhode Island Enrichment Fund. Every dollar of the this enrichment fund is allocated to enhancing the lives of those with whom we work by providing educational, recreational, vocational, […]

Farmington, CT – Two NAFI CT Therapists receive MST Sustained Excellence Awards Lisseth Jurado and Jasmine Iannotti, both therapists with the NAFI CT Multisystemic Therapy Program, have been awarded an MST Sustained Excellence award (an ESSY) in the category of Therapist Adherence. MST Services presents this award on an annual basis to therapists to provide […]

  Farmington, CT – NAFI CT has been awarded a 2016 Top Workplaces honor by the Hartford Courant. “We are honored to be recognized as a Top Workplace. The fact that this distinction was determined solely by employee feedback is particularly special,” noted Lynn Bishop, Executive Director for NAFI CT. “Creating a strong culture, one […]

A Wine & Beer Tasting Event to Benefit NAFI Connecticut, Inc.

NAFI Connecticut, Inc. is pleased to announce our newly opened Outpatient Clinic in Waterbury, CT.

Recipients are recognized for their outstanding contribution to the agency and for exemplifying and enhancing the Spirit of the Community through their dedication and commitment to NAFI.