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Wayside Youth & Family Support Network Awarded $121,000 Grant to Expand Behavioral Health Services in Southern Worcester County

July 31, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Betsy Freedman Doherty 774-287-6418 [email protected] FRAMINGHAM, Mass. July 14, 2026 — Wayside Youth & Family Support Network has been awarded a $121,000 Activation Fund grant from The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts to support furnishings and equipment for a new, expanded Charlton Community Services facility. The grant will help Wayside relocate…
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Wayside’s Lisa Gibalerio Named 2026 Commonwealth Heroine

June 26, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 24, 2026 Contact: Betsy Freedman Doherty 774-287-6418 [email protected] Wayside’s Lisa Gibalerio Named 2026 Commonwealth Heroine Framingham, MA (June 24, 2026) – Wayside Youth & Family Support Network is proud to announce that Lisa Gibalerio, MPH, has been named a 2026 Commonwealth Heroine by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women…
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Wayside Youth & Family Support Network Receives $75,000 Cummings Foundation Grant to Launch “Seeds of Wellness” Pilot Program

June 9, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 8, 2026 Contact: Betsy Freedman Doherty 774.287.6418 [email protected] Framingham, MA (June 8, 2026) – Wayside Youth & Family Support Network has been awarded a $75,000 grant from the Cummings Foundation to support the launch of its Seeds of Wellness pilot program within the organization’s Multi-Service Program. Wayside is one of 150…
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Watertown Community Foundation Awards Inaugural Education & Youth Development Grants

May 18, 2026

The following announcement was provided by the Watertown Community Foundation: The Watertown Community Foundation has awarded $39,475 in the inaugural Education and Youth Development grant cycle. This new grant program creates access to opportunities for Watertown youth that foster skill-building, creativity, leadership, confidence and resilience, while creating pathways for all young people to thrive. The…
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Wayside Youth & Family Support Network Earns Prestigious 2026 USA TODAY Top Workplaces Award

May 1, 2026

Framingham Massachusetts April 30, 2026 – Wayside Youth & Family Support Network is proud to announce that it has earned the prestigious 2026 USA TODAY Top Workplaces award. The award honors organizations with 150 or more employees that have created exceptional, people-first cultures. This year, more than 40,500 organizations were invited to participate. The winners…
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Trump’s Changes Lock Some Employers Out of H-1B Visa Program

April 10, 2026

Since imposing a $100,000 fee on new visas in September, the Trump administration has upended the skilled worker program. The Wayside Youth & Family Support Network has long struggled to recruit local teachers for its private special education school, relying on a skilled visa program to hire workers from countries like Brazil, Mexico and Germany.…
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Watertown’s Wayside Multi-Service Center Had a Scare with Threatened Cut of Federal Grant

February 23, 2026

The Wayside Multi-Service Center momentarily saw one-third of its budget disappear, with the removal of a federal grant. While the grant was restored within days, Sophia Suarez-Friedman, Program Director for Wayside Multi-Service Center, said it was both a stark reminder and a heartening response. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services (SAMHSA) grant accounts for…
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Healey-Driscoll Administration Expands Community-Based Behavioral Health Services for Children and Youth

September 5, 2025

Statewide Network of Community Service Agencies Selected to Provide Critical Services for MassHealth Children For immediate release: 9/03/2025 Governor Maura Healey and Lt. Governor Kim Driscoll Executive Office of Health and Human Services Boston — Today, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that 36 community service agencies have been selected across the state to provide home- and community-based…
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Addgene Supports Wayside Multi with Back-to-School Backpack Donation

August 7, 2025

  The following piece was provided by the Wayside Multi Service Center: As the new school year approaches, preparation can make all the difference — and thanks to Addgene, youth supported by Wayside Youth & Family Support Network’s Multi-Service Center (Wayside Multi) in Watertown will be starting the year well-equipped and ready to succeed. Addgene,…
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Q&A with Laura Kurman Who is Retiring from Wayside Multi Service Center After More Than 30 Years

July 3, 2025

For more than three decades, Laura Kurman has been working to help those in need in Watertown. She retired as Executive Director of the Wayside Multi Service Center at the end of June, and looked back on her time. Kurman spoke with Watertown News Editor Charlie Breitrose in her office at the house on North Beacon Street…
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Wayside is your Support Network

Wayside Youth & Family Support Network provides a wide variety of mental health counseling and family support services to children, young adults and families in 200 cities and towns across Massachusetts. To find the service that’s right for you and your family, please visit our services overview page for more information or contact us by calling 508.879.9800.

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Wayside Youth & Family Support Network
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