The Feeding Families Foundation is expanding the meals they provide at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital (YNHCH).
The foundation was created by Jeff and Samantha Dorman to help families who have to spend long periods of time at the hospital due to their children receiving cancer treatments.
They had firsthand experience after their daughter Harper was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of two.
“What we didn’t know and what many folks don’t know in that scenario is that food is provided for the child as the patient but it’s not provided for the parent or caregiver staying with that child,” said Jeff Dorman.
In 2024 they launched the Parent Plate program at YNHCH and have since provided over 2,000 meals to families in the hospital.
“Starting your day with an omelette and cup of coffee changes their trajectory for the entire day. It takes the edge off and allows you to focus on what matters most which is the health and well being of your child,” Jeff said.
The couple admits this is their first nonprofit and have had to learn the ropes along the way, but with the help of the community, they’ve been able to make significant progress.
In June, Feeding Families Foundation donated $25,000, which was raised in the first Strength in Numbers Fashion Show by artist Michael Pollack, to YNHCH to expand the Parent Plate Program to two additional units.
“We have to slowly get there but it’s exciting to know that two years in we’re able to fully fund the pediatric hematology, oncology floor and now to be able to provide meals for the parents in the pediatric intensive care and pediatric cardiac intensive unit as well, is very exciting,” Samantha Dorman said.
Dorman added they are working with local restaurants, such as Modern Pizza, GoodFellas, 80 Proof, Olmo Bagels, among others, to provide different types of cuisines.
Jennifer Jacquet volunteers with Feeding Families Foundation after receiving a “parent plate” herself, while her son was being treated for osteosarcoma.
“While he was in chemo it was three weeks out of a month that we were in the hospital, we’d had maybe a day where we would go home, do laundry, and then come back,” Jacquet said.
She described the program as a gamechanger for her son’s morale and other children receiving treatment.
“Kids going through chemo often have a lot of nausea, they have no appetite so being told, “hey there’s going to be pizza instead of a cafeteria meal, it’s going to be fun food, fried chicken or barbeque food, it was something to look forward to.”
Jacquet believes it was also a huge financial help given the time spent inside the hospital.
“Even if you normally have the money to afford this, everything gets more expensive when your kid has cancer, you’re eating every meal out, paying for insurance, co-pays, all these things.”
She and her son now volunteer with food deliveries at the hospital.
“He gets a lot of it, he’s really cut, he’ll push the cart, he really likes seeing the nurses without having to be at the hospital,” Jacquet said.
Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital provided the following statement on the Parent Plate Program:
