As of July 1, 2022, the Doddridge County Starting Points is now known as the Doddridge County Family Support Center. You will soon see changes to our logo on some new literature and signage. But we want you to know we are the same people you’ve known since 1999, with even more services coming soon to Doddridge County families.
Thanks to a generous grant from the Parkersburg Area Community Foundation, Doddridge County Family Support Center has been able to increase the variety of foods available through our emergency food pantry. We have been able to purchase a refrigerator and upright freezer so that we can give out fresh and frozen foods with our food boxes. Our food pantry, personal and household essentials pantry, and baby pantry are open on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and on the first and third Tuesdays of the month, also from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information about our pantry services, please call 304-873-3500.
The pantries are a welcome addition to the programs we already provide to Doddridge County citizens. We also have an in-home parent support program for families with young children, from prenatal through kindergarten entry, known as Parents as Teachers. We are in the process of hiring new family support workers so we can expand the number of families we serve in this program. For more information about the Parents as Teachers program, please call 304-873-3500.
Doddridge County Family Support Center also has available the Play as Learning Social groups (in the P.A.L.S. Room) where small playgroups are conducted, allowing young children an opportunity to learn skills they need to have to be successful in preschool or kindergarten. These are parent-child interaction groups, so a parent or guardian is required to attend. If you are on a waiting list for other early childhood programs in the county, you should call us and schedule some time with our P.A.L.S. team! For more information on our P.A.L.S. group, please call 304-873-3500.
Doddridge County Family Support Center is also the host for the Doddridge County Prevention Partnership (DCPP). With monthly coalition meetings, and activities for our new youth coalitions, who are known as the Ambassadors and the Crusaders, the DCPP’s focus is on awareness and prevention of substance misuse, including prescription and non-prescription drugs, alcohol, tobacco, e-cigarettes, and vaping, especially with our youth. There is also an emphasis on mental health of all ages, and information and referrals to assistance with mental health issues and suicide prevention are available through the DCPP.
All of our services are readily available within Doddridge County, and are totally free of charge. We have other programs available, and if we don’t have what you need, we will help you find it elsewhere. For more information on any of our programs, please call us at 304-873-3500, or email us at [email protected]. We hope to hear from you soon so we can serve you and your family!