Cleft of the Rock Foundation, Inc.
Cleft of the Rock Foundation (Bahamas)
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Every Family Has a Story
Parenting two young girls as a single parent in a new town, away from family and any support has not been easy. Especially as they girls are coming into the preteen ages. One is 10 and the other is 11. I am so grateful to have been invited by Founder Latina Newsome to attend the Parenting on Purpose classes offered by Dr. Bob Barnes.
After each class I have been able to leave with tools that I am able to apply when disciplining and parenting the girls. These classes seem to have come in the perfect time to help me and my family. I feel that Dr. Barnes is speaking to me directly, but also lets me know that I am not the only one going through the struggle of parenting preteens.
It is so important for me to raise independent and responsible young ladies who will be successful in this world, but did not have the tools. These classes have been the key that I was missing to help me make this possible, and would recommend it to anyone who have children or planning on having children.
- Natacha Villedrouin
My name is Pam Yukpaen and I am originally from Thailand. When I heard from my friend Janel that there was a parenting class in Deerfield I got so excited because I knew I needed some help with my 7 year old son. When I spoke with Latina on the phone, I told her about my son. She made arrangements for me to have a parenting session as soon as possible, although she had business to take care after Hurricane Dorian affected her family.
Our first session was introducing ourselves and discussing what was happening between my son and I. Although Latina was a stranger she treated me so nice. She is warm and very understanding. She is so proper and such a good example for me, due to how organized she is with everything; from her house to raising children.
In each session we watched Dr. Bob who is knowledgeable about parenting. He has a sense of humor, which makes it fun to watch the videos while learning at the same time. After each video, we had a discussion about the video topics. The more I learned, the more I found that all of the issues I am dealing with or complaining about my kids are the same problems others have. That replaced the parenting class that my parents didn’t have.
- Pam Yukpaen
I believe an organization like Cleft of the Rock Foundation is vital in our society. I'm thankful that the founder, Latina Newsome, uses her passion to encourage and empower men and women to come together and learn to live as families and teach us how we can be better parents to the generations to come.
I met Latina in January 2016. Little did I know that my life was going to change so dramatically that year. I was a wife, heavily involved in my church. My husband and I were a bit out of balance when it came with our family time. As I shared with Latina, she gave me words of wisdom regarding being more balanced with my family time especially my time with my husband. I think sometimes we can get so involved with life that we lose perspective. Each morning I would get encouraged and coached on how I could be a better wife and employee. Latina even took the time to pray with me.
I remember each week yet she would joke around with me and ask are we pregnant yet?? I would say no. She would say well what are you waiting for!! LOL! I was finally able to share with her on May 5, 2016 when I came to work and she asked me are we pregnant yet, that I wasn't sure, but I have a test and I went to the bathroom, came back to report that the test said "Error". We laughed and I went back to test again after drinking more water. This time I came back and I waved to her to come to one of the private rooms. I showed Latina the positive test and we cried and she prayed over me.
She played a pivotal role for me in that time of my life because there was such imbalance. I didn't know how to really prioritize the basic things of life because I hadn't had a mother for over 20 years. So what many would think is normal, for me, was new. Learning about ovulation, and being intentional with my time alone with my husband and putting him first instead of ministry, my sister, whom I raised, and even my friends.
I didn't have the best pregnancy, and Latina remained with me through it all. She would remind me to pray with my husband and not to allow the stress of my job to hinder my pregnancy. Thankfully she spoke wisdom to me at that time, and I eventually had to take a leave of absence from work, which was all worth it to bring my daughter, Victoria Kathleen King, into the world healthy on 12/26/2016.
When Latina started the foundation I was extremely happy because I realized it would be pivotal to us as we try to raise our daughter in the right way.
In May of 2017 she extended an invitation to be apart of Cleft of the Rock Foundation. Our first meeting was August 12, 2017. I can honestly say my husband and I are still glad that we attended and were and are still open to learning and sharing.
We have learned to learn to parent intentionally with our daughter.
To put aside slots of time for her and our family whether it's at dinner time or in the morning.
How to speak with Victoria and allow her to speak in her own little language teaching her how to communicate and how to express herself.
I know we have ways to go but the milestones our daughter is reaching is due to us parenting intentionally. My husband and I honestly didn't know anything about this until we started attending the Cleft of the Rock Foundation, Conversations on Parenting meetings.
This organization is vital for parents and communities so we can raise strong pillars for our society the next generation. We are preparing to attend the 9 week Parenting on Purpose series with Cleft of the Rock Foundation, and we cannot wait.
Earl and Carmelisa King
I have found the Conversations on Parenting meetings to be a great support system. It made me realize that there are others like me that may not have it all figured out, but we share ideas and ways we navigate the world of parenting. After attending a couple of meetings the most valuable thing that stood out to me was being deliberate and to parent with a goal. Many times we are reactive and take an approach where we "go with the flow". We, then, either accept or regret the outcome of this approach. I love that we are able to get others' perspective that helps us execute our awesome responsibilities as parents.
- Inshan Singh
Growing up, I had a tough time being raised by a mother with borderline personality disorder. She was neglectful, isolating, compulsive, and frequently suicidal. She didn't consistently feed my siblings or myself from a very young age and after divorcing my stepfather, who was the rock of our family, when I was 15, we had to move every time she got into a new relationship. I went to four different high schools before graduating. My example of what a mother is or should do was not the best, which is a concern for me going into motherhood myself in 3 months time. I am currently pregnant with my first child and when my brother referred me to Latina's parenting classes, I knew it was for this reason that I would be interested in it. I expected the conversation in the classes to enlighten me and my husband about the role of parenthood. We hoped to gain new information that would help us on our new journey of raising our daughter. My upbringing showed me what not to do but did not give much way to educating me about how to tackle challenges. Our expectations for the conversation were met by the cathartic and raw dialogue that the group shared. A few things I took away from the experience was to know that it's ok to seek help and my mother's faults were not my own. Raising my daughter could be done with intention, boundaries, care, and love despite my background or my husband's. The parenting class was such a huge resource and avenue for positive change for me that I would be happy to attend again. I would recommend Latina's parenting classes to anyone because they open the conversation and opportunity for intentional changes in how we respond to our children and the world we bring them up in. Definitely worth my while, and deeply appreciated!
- Heather Wert, 2018
