JULY 2025
Peer Recovery Support: Changing Lives in Bergen County
What began in 2016 as a small team of volunteers visiting hospital patients after an overdose has grown into a full-scale lifeline. Today, The Center for Alcohol and Drug Resources’ Peer Recovery Support Program includes a team of 19 staff and a 24/7 hotline, helping individuals and families across Bergen County on the journey to recovery.
Peers, who are in recovery themselves, help participants navigate paperwork, attend their first 12-step meetings, and find housing and a sense of purpose. “Recovery can be very lonely,” says Jessica Fernandez, Director of Recovery Supports. “We want people to feel they belong and that someone truly understands what they’re going through. We help them feel a sense of connection and community as they rebuild their lives.”
STRIVE Recreation: Building Valuable Life Skills
Every year, our community recreation program offers a wide range of enriching activities for adults aged 21 and older with intellectual and developmental disabilities. These daily activities are more than just fun and games; they help build valuable life skills in a supportive and social setting. From cooking and fitness to music, sewing, and movies, each activity is designed to promote growth in socialization and motor skills.
“We’ve expanded our activities this year to better support each member’s unique background, skills, and interests,” says Magdalene John, Recreation Manager. “With a variety of activities, we ensure that we meet individual needs and create a space where all members can thrive.”
As Families Evolve, So Do We
For more than 126 years, Children’s Aid and Family Services has been transforming lives through adoption, placing over 11,000 children into loving, permanent homes. Adoption remains a core part of our mission, and our commitment has only deepened over time. As the definition of family continues to evolve, so too have our services. Today, we proudly support a wide range of adoptive families, including grandparents raising grandchildren and other nontraditional caregivers, by offering resources that promote stability, resilience, and lifelong connection.
Agency Awarded Grant to Strengthen Families
Children’s Aid and Family Services is pleased to announce it has been awarded a grant from the New Jersey Department of Children and Families’ Division of Family and Community Partnerships. The funding will support the delivery of Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT), an evidence-based approach that addresses behavioral and emotional challenges in youth through family-centered care in Bergen, Essex, and Hudson Counties.
This is family-focused therapy that helps improve how families interact and communicate with one another. It’s designed for children and teens ages 6 to 17 who may be struggling with behaviors like acting out, skipping school and suffer from anxiety or depression.
We Invite you to réservez la date!
Join Children’s Aid and Family Services for an elegant evening inspired by the romance of Paris.
An Evening in Paris
Thursday, October 16, 2025
Indian Trail Club — Franklin Lakes, NJ
LIVE MUSIC | DINNER | DANCING | OPEN BAR | 50/50 RAFFLE | SILENT AUCTION
More details will follow—we look forward to sharing this special night
in support of our mission with you!
Organization and Foundation Support
Children’s Aid and Family Services gratefully acknowledges the many generous organizations and foundations that provided grants to support its programs for vulnerable children, adults and families.
- Alfiero and Lucia Palestroni Foundation
- Alfred N. Sanzari Family Foundation
- Allendale Woman’s Club
- Columbia Bank Foundation
- Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
- Farm Team, Inc.
- FJ Brotherton Charitable Trust
- Frank X & Mary E Weny Charitable Trust
- Gift of Life America
- Gertrude L. Hirsch Charitable Trust
- Greater Bergen REALTORS® CARES Foundation
- Horizon Foundation for New Jersey
- Johnson & Johnson
- Novartis
- Orange Orphan Society
- PSEG Foundation
- Sisters of St. Francis Peace
- St. Elizabeth’s Episcopal Church
- TD Charitable Foundation
- The Bank of America Charitable Foundation
- The Buster Spike Lucky Elkin Marri Love & Luck Fund
- The Greater Newark Holiday Fund
- The John and Margaret Post Foundation
- The Kaplen Fund
- The Lillian P. Schenck Foundation
- The M&T Charitable Foundation
- The Valley Hospital Foundation
- The WaWa Foundation
- TJX Foundation
- Turrell Fund
- Valley Bank
- Visions Federal Credit Union
- Whole Foods Market Foundation
- The Woman’s Club of Ridgewood