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Eastern Bank Honors Jon R. Firger, Executive Director of Family ACCESS of Newton, with Community Advocacy Award

His Leadership Advances Early Childhood Services That Prepare Thousands Of Children To Succeed

BOSTON, MA, November 25, 2019 – Eastern Bank, America’s oldest and largest mutual bank, is pleased to announce it has awarded Jon R. Firger, MBA, MSW, Executive Director of Family ACCESS of Newton, with a Community Advocacy Award in recognition of his leadership in building a brighter future for children in communities across Middlesex and Norfolk counties. For more than 100 years, Family ACCESS has provided programs that nurture child development, prevent trauma, promote effective parenting skills, and support working parents. Family ACCESS, referred to as A Center for Comprehensive Education and Support Services, serves thousands of families from underserved communities.

Jon joined Family ACCESS in 2010 as Executive Director. He is leading the organization through a new phase of growth, adding programs in early childhood development and education with supportive services for the entire family. His approach emphasizes strengthening the parent-child and teacher-child relationships to open doors and provide children and families with access to high quality educational resources and multi-lingual services.

Family ACCESS offers four integrated programs:
- An Early Learning Center, delivering quality education and nurturing child care for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers, and Pre-K kindergarten readiness;
- Counseling and Consultation, providing counseling and support services to families, children, and pregnant and parenting teens as they address current challenges and past traumas;
- Early Literary Services, helping families challenged by poverty, limited education, or literacy barriers prepare their children to enter school ready to learn; and
- CAP Child Assault Prevention, bringing workshops to schools that teach simple strategies to reduce children’s vulnerability to verbal, physical, and sexual assault and violence.

“Every day, Family ACCESS provides a safety net for vulnerable families throughout the most crucial years of a child’s development,” said Quincy Miller, Vice Chair and President of Eastern Bank. “Jon has guided his team to create a ‘learning’ organization and as a result, they are effectively and efficiently helping parents become better versions of themselves and young children develop the social, emotional, and intellectual skills they need to succeed in school and life. We thank him for his leadership and congratulate him on this award.”

The celebration of Eastern’s Community Advocacy Award coincides with the Bank’s focus on enriching early childhood development in its philanthropy and advocacy, and is part of Eastern’s broader strategy to address income inequality and workforce issues by supporting efforts that assist parents and caregivers and prepare children to be ready to learn and succeed. The Community Advocacy Award celebrates local community leaders who give their time and talent to address vital needs throughout Eastern’s New England footprint.

Jon Firger commented, “Our staff and the families we serve are together creating the strong foundations children need for a lifetime of success. We’re grateful to Eastern Bank for recognizing the importance of our work.”

About Eastern Bank
Founded in 1818, Boston-based Eastern Bank is America’s oldest and largest mutual bank, with over $11 billion in assets and more than 110 locations serving communities in eastern Massachusetts, southern and coastal New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. Eastern provides exceptional access to fairly priced banking, investment, and insurance products and services for consumers and businesses of all sizes. Eastern Bank, which includes Eastern Wealth Management and Eastern Insurance, is known for its outspoken advocacy and community support that has exceeded more than $140 million in charitable giving since 1999. An inclusive company, Eastern employs 1,900+ deeply committed professionals who value relationships with their customers, colleagues, and communities. Join us for good at www.easternbank.com and follow Eastern on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. 

Press contact:
Andrea Goodman
Eastern Bank
[email protected] / 781-598-7847

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