Dear friends of Malta House,

It is hard to believe that it was only six months ago that I accepted the position of Executive Director of Malta House! Time has surely flown by! I am truly blessed to have been given the opportunity to work with this amazing organization and be part of something that is making a difference in the lives of so many women and babies!

My first month was dedicated to listening and “learning the ropes” of the agency—looking for ways to add value where needed but staying aligned with the board’s strategic goals. I was able to focus on learning organizational history, building relationships and understanding the organization’s challenges and opportunities.

Malta House has a wonderful board of directors who dedicate much of their time to the mission of the agency and that has been invaluable during these first months. And my staff? In one word – Outstanding! Everyone goes above and beyond their call to ensure that the house and program are running smoothly and that the moms are on course to graduate and move on to independent, self-sufficient living.  

Having an office at Malta House has the added benefit – the wonderful sound of a baby laughing! I can be sitting at my desk and hear the pitter patter of little feet! After breakfast, as the babies and moms are finishing up in the kitchen and walking to the community room, a toddler or two will run into my office, climb onto my lap and just make my day! I get kisses blown to me from the door and a “Good morning, Miss Lisa”. And at the end of the day, it is a hug goodbye from some of the babies and a “get home safe” from the evening staff.  

We are in the process of creating a “learning center” and enhancing the services we provide for our families. The Malta House Bridge to Independence program will be offered on-site and provide a comprehensive curriculum that includes, education, job skills training, life and parenting skills, employment, and financial literacy skills. Our mothers will have the unique opportunity to experience being a “working mom” while they also have access to building better skills, secure better jobs, and ultimately live better lives for themselves and their children.

Our goal in merging our existing program with this workforce development program is to further assist our families in building their own pathway to economic independence and sustainable self-sufficiency and to ensure our moms acquire the resources, skills, and sustained behavior changes necessary to provide a better future for themselves and their children.

In addition to the new programming that will be taking place, Malta House has almost completed a massive project to get the in-house Nursery licensed by the State of Connecticut. This licensing, once completed, allows Malta House to partner with the Office of Early Childhood, which will bring new programmatic elements to the Nursery, ensuring we are giving our Malta babies the best possible start in life.

During all the significant changes at Malta House, I want to thank all our dedicated volunteers for their patience. We know that volunteer opportunities have been limited over the past couple of months through the licensing period and programmatic changes. We can not wait to have all our plans completed to announce the new and improved ways you can help support our moms and babies.

There is so much to celebrate at Malta House, and I am grateful to be part of it! Please reach out to me with any questions or thoughts you may have at lkoeppel@maltahouse.org or 203-587-0088 ext. 111.

With heartfelt gratitude,

Lisa Casagrande Koeppel

Executive Director
Malta House, Inc.

www.maltahouse.org

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