NJ program to keep together families in need expands

A state-funded program that works to keep together families in need has now expanded to cover nine New Jersey counties.
Family Connections has partnered with the New Jersey Department of Children and Families to form the HomeSafe program. Using a combination of counseling and other support services, the program works to ensure that a family in need can live together.
Nakisha Dollar tells News 12 New Jersey about the first time she and her five children walked into their new home in Paterson in 2015. Not long before, her children were all at risk of getting adopted by other families.
“They were running up and down the stairs saying, ‘Ma, we have a house.’ They were so excited,” she says. “Then they just fell asleep in my bed. They didn’t sleep in their room, they slept with me.”
The HomeSafe program recently expanded into Middlesex County.
“The idea of giving people second chances are meaningful,” says Gov. Chris Christie. “I’m confident that whoever the next governor is, they’ll be looking to expand this [program].”
Family Connections executive director Jacques Hyrshko says that the program is about saving families generations from now.
Officials say that 24 families have been housed since the program started three years ago.