On Saturday, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso hosted a Brooklyn Community Baby Shower for 100 new and expecting mothers. The day-long celebration took place at the New York City Housing Authority’s Van Dyke Community Center in Brownsville and was chock-full of games, arts and crafts, giveaways, and information about pregnancy and postpartum care. Since the beginning of his administration, Borough President Reynoso has advanced an historic maternal health agenda, giving the entirety of his first-year capital funding to Brooklyn’s three public hospitals for maternal health improvements and launching a variety of initiatives, including his Maternal Health Task Force, “Born in Brooklyn” baby boxes, and a multilingual, multimedia public health education campaign.
Photos courtesy of the office of the Brooklyn Borough President
“When I became Borough President, I promised Brooklyn that addressing disparities in maternal health care for Black women would be a top priority,” said Reynoso. “For too long, our systems have deprived new and expecting parents of the essentials that they need to start a family. Community baby showers like this are part of a new way forward that Brooklyn is building for growing families. By celebrating the exciting journey of parenthood for new parents and providing resources to raise our newest Brooklynites, we’re proving that we can help close the gaps in maternal healthcare through community, celebration, and love— the Brooklyn way. Congratulations to all the new Brooklyn families, and a huge thank you to the many partners who joined us to make this joyous day possible.”
The celebration kicked off with games and arts & crafts, followed by remarks by Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, and included two workshops: a Safe Sleep Workshop by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and a Postpartum Mental Health Workshop by Brooklyn Parent Support. More than a dozen organizations tabled at the event, providing information, resources, and supplies to new families. Attendees left with diaper bags full of diapers, baby wipes, baby blankets, postpartum pads, and baby books, as well as a supply box containing a baby bottle, cocoa butter, baby wipes, and more.