Letter to the editor

National Home Visitors Appreciation Week

To the editor:

Home visitors provide essential support through pregnancy, the postpartum period, and early childhood milestones. We would be honored if you would consider publishing our tribute to these dedicated individuals in your upcoming edition:

In a state as vast as ours, where mountains and miles often separate families from support, home visitors are the vital bridge. As we celebrate National Home Visitors Appreciation Week (April 20–24), it is time to honor these dedicated professionals.

Home visitors—including nurses, educators, and therapists—work through programs like Infant Learning Program, Nurse-Family Partnership, Parents as Teachers, and Head Start. They travel through snow and across remote reaches to meet Alaskans in their most vulnerable spaces. Whether they are helping a new parent build confidence or ensuring a child hits developmental milestones, their impact ripples through generations.

In Alaska, where the environment is as challenging as it is beautiful, this work is nothing short of heroic. Home visitors provide guidance without judgment and support without condition. They don't just make a difference; they are the difference for our state’s "newest treasures."

On behalf of the Alaska Home Visitors Alliance, we say thank you. Your resilience and heart make our families stronger and our communities more connected.

Shannon Parker and Reanne Honemann-Queja,

Alaska Home Visitors Alliance Co-Facilitators