House Speaker DeLeo's site visit to Medford Family Network.

Last week, Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo visited the Medford Family Network, a Children's Trust Family Center, accompanied by state Reps. Paul Donato, Christine Barber and Sean Garballey, to learn about our work.

They were received by Marie Cassidy, director of the Medford Family Network for the past 22 years, Suzin Bartley, the executive director of the Children's Trust, Medford Superintendent of Schools Roy Belson, local parents, and others.

The visit was covered by the Medford Public Schools' MPS Advantage and the Medford Transcript. Below are a couple of excerpts:

“The best investment for us all is in early childhood education,” DeLeo said. “The Children’s Trust is a leader and incredible champion in addressing this issue. Children who have access to Early Childhood Education are better prepared for college and less likely to be incarcerated. Over 20 businesses in the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce agreed with me about the importance of Early Childhood Education and are willing to step up and assist us with this endeavor. Children are our future and they realize that they are investing in the future of our Commonwealth. I applaud the work of those of you on the front lines of this issue, including the Children’s Trust and the Medford Family Network.”

“We enable parents to do their jobs,” said Suzin Bartley, the executive director of the Children’s Trust. “We provide parents with the tools they need to help their children learn and grow. We wrap a protective quilt around families, by collaborating with numerous programs and agencies to strengthen the family unit.”