On July 7, 2004, Boys & Girls Village dedicated 32 new beds for children at risk in a one-hour ceremony and tour held on its 11-acre Wheelers Farm Road campus here in Milford, CT.

New Kids I.N.N. Home New Safe Haven Home

The new beds, part of a two-building, $4.2 million project, replaces the outdated residential Cottage, first opened in 1958.

Connecticut Attorney Gen. Richard Blumenthal and Milford Mayor Jim Richetelli, and State House Majority Leader James Amann were among those dignitaries and public officials attending. All had high praise to Boys & Girls Village and its programs for at-risk children in Connecticut.

Pointing at the two, new yellow-vinyl sided homes for children, Blumenthal said, "Today is historical in that it helps to begin the end of the pattern of failure" in programs that are vital to the health and safety of children," Blumenthal said. "This is a model for our state and our country."

He added, "There has never been a vote I've been more proud to cast" as a member of the State Bonding Commission. The attorney general serves on the State Bonding Commission that approved a $2 million grant for the Safe Haven and Kids I.N.N. project in December 2001. Other seed money included $670,000 from the federal government secured with the aid of Cong. DeLauro and her staff, as well as early contributions from the Village Foundation, among others.

State Rep. Jim Amann, State Sen. Win Smith, Sen. Sen. Doc Gunther and about 150 other supporters, staff and clients were on hand to tour and see the new bedrooms, part of the "home-like" two-building complex where the Kids I.N.N. and Safe Haven programs at Boys & Girls Village will now be operated.

The additions increase bed capacity by 30% at the agency, and provide state-of-the-art living spaces serving some of the state's neediest at-risk children, including some who would be housed out-of-state due to an overall shortage of in-state beds.

In addition to the two homes, Boys & Girls Village also operates a school for children with special needs, and the agency recruits, trains, places and supports hundreds of children in foster and adoptive care from offices in Bridgeport, New Haven and Waterbury.

The new homes "are kid friendly and homelike," said Chief Administrative Officer Doug DeCerbo. "We have all the amenities of home that all children deserve, while still providing for their safety."

Chief Executive Officer Ken Fellenbaum was cited for leading the major gift fund raising effort, still ongoing, and pointed to the Cottage building, noting, "The job is still not completed."

Mayor Richetelli called the new homes "impressive," while State Rep. Amann, Sen. Smith and other state officials touted the cooperative role of federal, state and local officials in bringing the project to successful fruition.

The Kids I.N.N. is a sub-acute program for children with mental health needs. The Safe Haven is part of the state of Connecticut's "safe home" network for children removed from their homes for the first time for their own safety. Children from either program can attend the Boys & Girls Village Day School, a certified special education program also operated on the Milford campus.

Fellenbaum noted that tours of the main campus and new home can be arranged by calling Development Director Chris Carroll's office at (203) 876-3858.