giving back in 2022!

  $40,000 raised!

 $10,000 contributions went to Yale New Haven Health System, serving both Connecticut and Rhode Island, Kent Hospital, part of the Care New England's Employee Relief Fund for Rhode Island, and Northwell and Montefiore Health Systems, to assist in the state of New York. Contributions directly benefited frontline workers.

 Part of the proceeds from our annual bowl-a-thon support Junior Achievement of Western CT.  The employees of Barnum Financial Group not only devise the bowling teams for this fundraiser but also donate their time to JA to teach financial literacy.

 The Foundation has hosted several food drives over the years benefiting organizations, such as Spooner House, Feeding Westchester, City Harvest, Guilford Food Bank, and Hands on Hartford.

Comfort Bags are filled with essentials that a child might need if they are removed from their home suddenly (i.e. soap, shampoo, deodorant, coloring books, a journal). Recipients are those in foster care, hospitals, or shelters. In 2019, we donated 400 bags and in 2018, almost 300 bags. Bags were distributed via social service agencies in CT, RI, and NY.

 We are proud to report that we donated 9,000 diapers  to those in need in 2020! A portion of our collection supported the United Way of Milford. The second half of our collection, alongside additional donations of formula and diaper ointment, supported the City of Hartford Department of Families.

Every child has the right to a sense of stability and security. Nightly bedtime rituals, including fresh pajamas and a storybook, offer a consistent,  reassuring “comfort zone” at the end of each day. In both 2014 and 2017, we collected and distributed books and pajamas to more than 350 children via PajamaProgram.org.

In both 2014 and 2019, we placed collection bins at each Barnum Financial Group location to collect new and gently used coats, hats, scarves, and gloves. Items were then donated to local social service agencies to go to children and families in need. 

 Entrants ages 6 to 14 submitted an original 

essay that reflected their personal view of "what 

the American Dream means to me." Winners received a deposit into a 529 plan account of their choice or similar college savings vehicle.

  MetLife Foundation, Barnum Financial Group, Barnum Foundation for Life, and Elm City Communities teamed up with KABOOM! to build an incredible, kid-designed playground in New Haven, CT. Kids who don't have access to a safe place to play miss out on critical opportunities to grow physically, socially, and emotionally. The Foundation has also helped to create playgrounds in Stratford, Bridgeport, and Milford, CT.