Granite United Way Community Baby Shower Supports New and Expecting Caregivers

Granite United Way's Community Baby Shower supports new and expecting caregivers with essential baby items, connections to local resources, and a warm, celebratory space during a critical time in their lives. The event combines the joy of welcoming a new baby with practical help that reduces stress and builds stability for families.

A Room Full of Support

This year's Community Baby Shower brought together families and a wide range of community agencies—from higher education partners to civic groups and local philanthropists—including UNH Early Child Development, Great Bay Community College's nursing program, Portsmouth Lions Club, and Women United.

Gift Bags Full of Baby Essentials

Participants received essential baby supplies, thanks to generous in-kind donations from community partners. In total, the donated items will support approximately 100 low-income or homeless mothers, with baby essentials valued at more than $300 per family.

Among the items distributed were 5,376 diapers, 6,784 wipes, and 58 containers of diaper rash cream, along with special gifts like 200 handmade quilts from Project Linus, 100 teddy bears from St. Vincent de Paul, and 300 bags of Port City Pretzels. These practical items ease the financial burden during those first months with a new baby.

"These baby supplies were such an amazing gift to provide our community. With all of the uncertainty right now—and especially with many of our families without paychecks as federal employees or affected by the WIC and EBT changes—we are receiving record levels of requests for assistance," said Jessica Parker, Director of Family and Social Services, Greater Seacoast Community Health.

Connecting Families to Vital Resources

Beyond the gift bags and baby essentials, the heart of the Community Baby Shower is access to trusted community resources. This resource fair gave families direct, face-to-face time with local agencies and healthcare providers including AmeriHealth Caritas, Community Action Partnership of Strafford County, Families First and Greater Seacoast Community Health, Gather, HCA Portsmouth Regional Hospital, NH Healthy Families, Strafford County Public Health Network, WellSense, Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, and WIC NH.

These connections meant families could leave not only with supplies, but also with information, referrals, and relationships to help them navigate health, nutrition, and early childhood services.

One especially valuable resource was "Gus the Bus," Gather's mobile food market, which offered all attendees the chance to shop on-site for healthy food options.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors

Events like the Community Baby Shower would not be possible without support from our community sponsors. This year, investments from Exeter Hospital, AmeriHealth Caritas, HCA, Kennebunk Savings Bank, NH Healthy Families, and St. Mary's Bank helped ensure that every family walked away with both immediate essentials and important connections at the very start of their child's journey.