NORTHLAND AREA FAMILY SERVICE CENTER

Mission:  With compassion and respect, we provide education, mentoring, and support services that build strong individuals and families in the Northland Community.

Vision:  We empower Northland Families to realize their full potential, enrich their lives and shape their future.

We Value: All People, Education, Partnerships and Community

Northland Area Family Center is an independent non-profit agency physically located in Remer, Minnesota serving residents living in the entire Northland School District. Begun by a group of concerned citizens whose goal was to support families in our area by making them more resilient, the Family Center has continued to serve area residents through the collaborative efforts of public and private agencies, community members, and Northland Community Schools. The Family Center continues to reach out to the community by developing innovative programs that build on the strengths of all participants.

Quick Facts:

•    Incorporated in 1996 as a 501C3
• We serve the Northland Community School District and parts of Leech Lake Reservation.
• This is a population of 4,474 people (5.26 persons per square mile)
• In our service area 20% of households make less than $20,000 and 11.9% or 536 people in our community live below the poverty line. 

Our programs include:

Healthy Families America - Affiliate ~ Family Center Home visiting

This is a program for parents. The Family Support Specialist works with a family when they are pregnant or with an infant if they are less than 3 months old until the child turns three. The program supports healthy and safe families, and works with parents as they deliver healthy babies, bond with their children, and learn about their child’s development. Our Family Support Specialist works with parents to plan a healthy future for their family.

 

Family Center Preschool: 

Preschool serves children age three in a wonderful, home-like environment. Students experience hands-on activities, making friends, solve problems through cooperative play—all while learning about numbers, letters and words.

 

ParentChild+

The ParentChild+ prgram encourages healthy development through facilitated play, reading and enriched conversations using carefully chosen books and toys that are our gift to the family.

Families begin the program when their child is 18 months to 2-1/2 years old. The PC+ Early Learning Specialist visits with your family for 1/2 hour twice a week. You'll learn creative new ways to teach your child and learn together as  a family to help your child grow, develop and be ready for school.

 

Family Support 

This is for families who need help accessing and filing for social services, making long-distance phone calls, and using the internet, etc. Individualized plans for assistance take into consideration special circumstances and life events. We also have a MNsure navigator on site to help with MNsure needs!

Toys For Kids

The Family Center collaborates with volunteers to help area children have a brighter holiday. The Family Center served as the fiscal host for donations. Volunteers coordinated the program and distributed the gifts to families before the Holidays. This program is exclusively donation-funded.

• In 2024 we served 52 Families – 136 children.

Diaper Hub

Since April of 2024, the Northland Area Family Center has partnered with the Diaper Bank of Minnesota. Our goal is to provide diapers to Northland area families in need, increase awareness about diaper need in Minnesota, and advocate for changes to improve conditions for babies who need diapers. The Family Center acts as main storage, coordination, tracking, reporting, ordering, and also provides diapers directly to any child or family in need. 

Legal Kiosks 

Our Legal Kiosks provides free, secure access to online legal resources, virtual court hearings, and self-help tools for individuals who may not have reliable internet or devices. Located onsite, the kiosks help reduce barriers to justice by offering user-friendly support- empowering our community with accessible legal assistance.

To see more of what we do please visit:

Our Website: www.northlandfamilycenter.org/

Our Facebook: www.facebook.com/NorthlandAreaFamilyServiceCenter