Groundwork Ohio Roadshow 2026: Mahoning & Trumbull Counties

Groundwork Ohio’s Roadshow continued on August 28 with a full day in the Mahoning Valley. From a morning community conversation exploring universal newborn nurse visits to an afternoon community baby shower connecting families directly with local organizations and resources, the day highlighted both the strength of the region’s network of support and the barriers families still face when trying to access it.

As Groundwork Ohio travels across the state, these conversations help us better understand what is working for young children and families, where gaps remain, and how local experiences can inform statewide policy solutions.

The day began at the Mahoning Valley Campus of Care in Mineral Ridge for a community conversation in partnership with Family Connects Ohio, focused on Creating a Standard for Newborn Care. The conversation, moderated by Lynanne Gutierrez, Groundwork Ohio President & CEO, featured:

• Christine Hanysh, Director of Social Services of the Educational Service Center of Eastern Ohio

• Dr. Laura Sorg, MD, FAAFP, Medical Director for Early Intervention and Family Connects Ohio

• Tiffany Beam, a mother from the Trumbull County community

• Shannon Weilacher, Public Health Nurse for Trumbull County Combined Health District

• Nicole Herczog, Public Health Nurse for Mahoning County Public Health

The open discussion following the panel brought together Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown), parents, health and social service professionals, home visitors, early childhood leaders, and other community leaders to explore how universal newborn nurse visits can support maternal mental health, infant feeding, family stability, and infant safety while helping families identify needs early and connect with community resources.

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The experiences shared by parents and professionals brought the data shared to life. Tiffany, a mother of five, shared how programs like Help Me Grow ultimately became an important resource for her family. And yet, she did not know about many of those services until the birth of her youngest child. Her experience emphasized a theme that surfaced repeatedly throughout the morning: resources can only support families when families know they exist and can reach them.

Meeting Families Where They Are

Dr. Laura Sorg, Medical Director for Early Intervention and Family Connects Ohio, shared that Ohio is leading the way in expanding the universal home visiting achieved through the Family Connects model, and that the state is on track to have the greatest reach of population in a diversity of regions. She also described the program as being community-specific in how it delivers care to not just moms and babies but entire households, despite being universally accessible regardless of income or other barriers. ,Her comments illustrated the importance of ensuring mothers have access to support during a season when maternal mental health challenges can easily go unspoken.

Family Connects offers all families in its service area an opportunity to connect with a nurse following the birth of a child, identifying needs early so that families can receive connections to additional resources. Panelists discussed the unique value of meeting families in their homes. Nurses and home visitors can answer questions one-on-one, build trusted relationships and identify concerns that parents may be less comfortable with raising in other settings. Those conversations can uncover needs ranging from breastfeeding and maternal mental health to domestic violence, hypertension, safe sleep, formula, food, housing, and transportation.

The message was clear: trusted relationships matter. Families are more likely to seek and accept support when information comes through people and places they already trust. The group also emphasized the need for more inclusive, community-based spaces where mothers, fathers, and caregivers can build relationships and receive support. As one attendee reflected, being a mom is a full-time role – you never really take the hat off. Supporting young children also means supporting the adults caring for them and ensuring parents have opportunities to care for themselves, build community, and ask for help.

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The underlying message was consistent: families shouldn’t have to become experts in Ohio’s early childhood system to receive support.

Seeing Family Child Care in Action

The Roadshow also brought the Groundwork team to Mary’s Little Lambs, a licensed Type B family child care program in Champion, Ohio operated by Groundwork Ohio Early Learning Advisory Council member, MaryBeth Bush. MaryBeth’s work illustrates the critical role that home-based child care providers play in Ohio’s early childhood system. Mary’s Little Lambs is Bronze Rated though Ohio’s Step Up To Quality program. She also works with the Early Childhood Resource Center in Youngstown, bringing both a provider and early childhood systems perspective to her work. Her commitment also extends to military families, providing weekend child care that meets the unique needs of parents who serve.

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Connecting Families with Resources

The Roadshow concluded at the Warren-Trumbull County Public Library for the Sprinkled with Care Community Baby Shower, where expecting parents, caregivers and families with young children could connect directly with organizations serving the community.

More than 200 people attended the event and approximately 30 organizations participated, offering information, services, resources, and tangible everyday infant care items. Participating organizations brought numerous baby shower gifts that were raffled off to families at the end of the event. We are grateful to the Educational Service Center of Eastern Ohio and the many community partners who helped make the event possible. The baby shower offered a tangible example of something we heard throughout the day: sometimes the most powerful thing a community can do is make it easier for families to access what they need in one place.

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Looking Ahead

Our time in Mahoning and Trumbull Counties reinforced that communities already have tremendous supports: dedicated providers, nurses, clinicians, home visitors, community organizations, parents and local leaders working every day to support young children. The challenge is making sure families can reach them.

As the Roadshow continues across Ohio, we’ll keep listening to the people who know their communities best, and asking what it will take to ensure every child and family has the opportunity for a strong start.