A message from the SARAH Foundation:
Founded in 1957 by three Guilford families, SARAH was created to provide individuals living with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities with quality educational experiences and access to meaningful employment opportunities. As needs changed, SARAH pivoted to provide residential housing and support for independent living arrangements as well as transitional services and employment partnerships. In 1989, the SARAH Foundation was formed to serve as the fundraising arm to generate resources and increase awareness for the programs and services provided by SARAH. Board leadership decided in 1990 to reorganize SARAH from one agency into three separate and independent service agencies focused on specific elements of the existing programs and services offered.
In the decades since, the SARAH family of agencies – SARAH Inc., SARAH Tuxis, and SARAH SENECA – have been leaders in the human services field along the Connecticut shoreline, bringing invaluable, life-changing services to adults and children within our communities. These critical services have been supported by the fundraising efforts of the SARAH Foundation, for which all the SARAH agencies are grateful.
In recent years, SARAH Inc. has expanded its geographical reach beyond the shoreline and now provides services in over fifty towns and five counties through its Birth to Three programs in Connecticut. Additionally, SARAH Inc. continues its Adult Services Employment and Enrichment Day Programs well beyond the shoreline.
SARAH Inc.’s services differ programmatically from the residential services, day supports, recreation, leisure and respite services currently provided by SARAH Tuxis and SARAH SENECA and has led to the natural evolution of the SARAH family of agencies. In response, SARAH Inc. has decided to establish itself as an independent organization separate from the SARAH family of agencies. This will include, among other exciting things, the adoption of a new name in the near future and the assumption of its own fundraising and development efforts. Moving forward, effective October 1, 2023, SARAH Inc. will no longer be a part of the SARAH Foundation’s fundraising efforts and programs.
The SARAH Foundation’s commitment to providing critical resources and support to our sister agencies – SARAH Tuxis and SARAH SENECA – remains unwavering and unchanged. The Foundation will continue to provide financial support through annual endowment distributions, direct program support by way of grants and other funding opportunities as well as brand building and increasing community awareness through annual fundraising activities, special events, collaborative relationships, the SARAH Partners Program and community interactions, among other initiatives.
SARAH SENECA and SARAH Tuxis will continue with their missions to care for individuals living with intellectual and/or other disabilities in Greater New Haven and along the shoreline through a variety of high-quality programs and services.
With headquarters in Guilford, CT, SARAH Tuxis offers residential services and day support options along with recreation, leisure and respite programs while embracing opportunities to create new services to meet the needs of the community. Creative services include the new Gavin & Friends program opening on the Guilford Green in the fall of 2023. Gavin & Friends is an extension and evolution of the daily services provided at Tuxis Harbor in Westbrook, CT.
SARAH SENECA, with headquarters in Branford, CT, provides residential support and services to individuals living in a variety of residential settings while creatively providing opportunities to engage with the local community through daily living skills and family support and services.
Throughout this transition, each agency will remain committed to providing high-quality, robust programming to the individuals they serve. The SARAH Foundation will continue with its longstanding support of SARAH Tuxis and SARAH SENECA. The overall mission for each agency will remain the same; to positively impact the lives of individuals supported now and for years to come.
We wish our colleagues at SARAH Inc. well as they transition away from the SARAH family of agencies and towards a new name and their own independent development and program efforts.
For questions, please contact Ken Alberti, Executive Director, SARAH Foundation at [email protected].
