Better Beginnings helped shape alumna’s path to success
By Jen Samuel, Managing Editor
Better Beginnings’ philosophy is to “build a positive self-image through intellectual, social, emotional and physical development,” according to its website.
For Cari Fais, that’s exactly what happened.
When Ms. Fais was enrolled as a toddler at Better Beginnings Child Development Center in Hightstown, teachers emphasized to her the importance of helping others and giving back to the community, Ms. Fais said during a telephone interview.
That’s a lesson Ms. Fais didn’t take lightly. She has volunteered locally in Mercer County and as far away as Antigua, Guatemala.
”Better Beginnings taught me that my well-being is connected to the well-being of the people around me,” she said.
Ms. Fasis will be honored at Saturday night’s Mayors’ Shining Star Gala, an annual fundraising event for Better Beginnings. She also is Better Beginnings’ Alumna of the Year.
”When she came here, she really had very sweet, contagious smile about her,” said Luz Horta, executive director at Better Beginnings, during a telephone interview on Thursday.
”I think early on she just started giving back, which was very sweet to see,” she said. “I am proud to have known her and to know her.”
Ms. Fais attended Better Beginnings from 1983 to 1986.
”They spent a lot of time reading to us and singing. … They taught us letters and the alphabet,” she said. “Beyond that, my teachers at Better Beginnings really emphasized values that we need in our community such as empathy and respect for others.
”The staff at Better Beginnings taught me that my own well-being is connected to the well-being of those around me. That’s a big part of the education at Better Beginnings as well.”
Empowerment was a big part of the lessons taught at Better Beginnings, she explained.
”They made sure each student knew that he or she deserved unconditional love and respect. It was very empowering to spend so much time around women who told me I had the ability to do anything.”
Her teachers included Mildred Bell and Nancy Kennedy.
”I also remember spending a lot of time with Bettie (Witherspoon), Althea (Lewis), Janice (Jones) and Luz (Horta),” she said. “Each of these staff members encouraged me to be independent and curious, and to problem-solve.”
Ms. Fais went on to work at Better Beginnings while a student at Hightstown High School. After graduating from George Washington University, she entered law school in 2005.
”After college, I returned to Mercer County and worked with victims of domestic violence, first at Womanspace Inc. and then in the Victim Witness Unit of the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office,” she said. “The values I learned at Better Beginnings contributed to my interest in doing work that would have a positive impact in the community.”
She now works on complex commercial litigation as an attorney at Friedman Kaplan Seiler & Adelman LLP in New York City.
The Better Beginnings program allowed her mother, raising two young daughters alone, to go to work with a sense of peace, Ms. Fais said.
”Better Beginnings provided my family with quality, affordable day care. My mother was raising two daughters on her own and Better Beginnings enabled her to go to work and support her family,” she said.
While Ms. Fais is a gala honoree, she said she is looking forward to giving credit to Better Beginnings.
”I am grateful for the opportunity to publicly acknowledge the tremendous impact Better Beginnings had on my family and the path I’ve taken,” she said.
In fact, Better Beginnings is still inspiring Ms. Fais to do good in the world through helping others.
”Better Beginnings staff’s devotion to improving the lives of children continues to inspire me and shape my choices,” she said. “I recently spent time volunteering at Casa Jackson, a center for malnourished infants in Antigua, Guatemala. I was drawn to the work Casa Jackson does in part because it reminded me of Better Beginnings’ commitment to providing a lifeline to families in this community.”
She said she hopes people will get involved by either volunteering or donating to the program.
The Mayors’ Shining Star Gala, the annual fundraising event benefiting educational programs at Better Beginnings Child Development Center in Hightstown, will take place from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, April 30, at the Crowne Plaza in Monroe. Tickets are $70 per person. For more information, call 609-448-6226.

