Hartford -- Concerned mothers were joined by social service providers and advocates at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford to deliver a Mother’s Day message on the state budget. Lucy Nolan, Executive Director of End Hunger Connecticut! and West Hartford mother of three, declared, “On Mother’s Day, we don’t need flowers or a nice box of chocolates. What we need is a budget that delivers peace of mind. We need to know that our children will get the best education that Connecticut can offer; that they will be able to go to college; that we can pay the mortgage or rent, have access to reliable, affordable health care and put nutritious food on the table.”
Melissa Riley, Mansfield mother of one, emphasized the importance of dental care, "If dental health services for HUSKY/ Medicaid clients are cut, there will only be adverse affects for kids and adults like me and my four-year-old daughter. Without the dental portion of the Medicaid program for adults, people like me will resort to seeking emergency care at the hospital for a toothache, in turn costing the state much more money. If prior authorization is required for dental services to kids and adults on Medicaid, my dentist might not keep seeing families like mine because of the administrative burden.”
Deborah Ullman, CEO of the YWCA of the Hartford Region and mother of a child with Down Syndrome spoke about proposed cuts to funding for high school graduates with developmental disabilities. “If the proposed cuts are accepted, day programs will not be available for my son until October 1st even though he’ll graduate in June,” said Ullman. “This will leave a three-month gap in service. That will not only make it difficult for me to find proper care for him, but will also result in him losing ground on the amazing progress that he has made in school.”
Bonita Griffin of Mothers for Justice in New Haven, mother of two, emphasized the importance of employment and safety net services: “Even though I was getting dressed up every morning, getting on the bus, and applying for jobs everywhere I could think of, I have had no luck getting hired. I don’t what I am going to do to put food on my table. How can this happen here in Connecticut? I want to tell Governor Rell and Legislative Leaders that any further cuts in safety net programs will be a travesty of justice.”
Andrea Okrentowich, from Seymour, mother of two and Board member of the Public Housing Residents Network, noted that Governor Rell seeks to eliminate a program that keeps rents affordable in public housing. “A budget is a reflection of the state’s values,” she said.
Sherry Linton, Early Care and Education Policy Analyst for the Connecticut Association for Human Services and mother of two, brought her 4-month old son with her to highlight the importance of quality child care for working mothers. “The one thing we should all agree on is that the quality of our children’s education should reflect progress, not steps backward. We should not balance the budget on the backs of the most vulnerable: children and the poor.” Funding for early care and education is largely protected in both the Governor’s and the Appropriations Committee budget proposals.
The speakers assembled a bouquet of flowers representing what they want for Mother’s Day, including funding for public schools, early care and education, higher education, health care, housing, and safety net services.
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