Tips and TLC for moms-to-be

About a hundred young parents and parents-to-be gathered at the Fame Diner in Fresh Meadows recently for some healthy food, tips and tender loving care, at the third annual “Community Baby Shower,” sponsored by the Queens Health Coalition (QHC).
The event, on the evening of Wednesday, December 10, was hosted by QHC’s Comprehensive Prenatal and Perinatal Services Network and was billed as being for “mothers-to-be or women who have children four-years old or younger.”
It drew its share of nervous-looking expectant fathers, too.
That was just fine, according to the group’s web site, which encourages expectant dads to contact them for “Valuable information and advice can positively impact your social relationships and promote healthy choices, resulting in healthy living.”
“Our purpose here tonight is to replicate a traditional family baby shower that many of these young women and families might not otherwise have,” said Phyllis Shafran, the Coalition’s Executive Director.
Mixed in with games, prizes and dinner, the more than 100 attendees in the banquet room of the upscale diner at 176-19 Union Turnpike heard words of encouragement and advice from health care professionals, including a former nurse and former Queens Borough President, Claire Shulman.
“We want to show our support while also offering valuable information on ways to help insure positive birth outcomes and how to improve parenting skills,” Shafran said.
QHC is a Flushing-based, non-profit organization that links health care providers with health care consumers and provides services from group presentations and workshops to one-on-one counseling and referrals.
In addition to prenatal and perinatal (from about mid-pregnancy to shortly after childbirth) services, the coalition works with children, teens, pre-teens, young adults and the elderly.
Their multi-lingual team of professionals offers workshops, group presentations, one-on-one counseling, referrals and advocacy, plus valuable materials designed to encourage, educate and empower anyone who wants to, not only live longer, but live better, according to their web site.
“We provide the facts and the hope that anyone can improve the quality of their life once they understand the choices and assistance available to achieve a healthier life,” they say.
For more information about the Queens Health Coalition, call 718-762-0346 or visit their web site: www.qhcnyc.org.