Solano County Black Infant Health Program

10/16/2026

Every Kick Counts! Every Movement Matters!

Did you know that paying attention to your baby's movements during pregnancy is an important way to monitor their well-being?

Beginning around 28 weeks of pregnancy, take time each day to get familiar with your baby's unique movement patterns. Those little kicks, rolls, and wiggles are more than precious moments of connection. They can also provide important information about your baby's health!

Here's how to count your baby's kicks:

- Pick a Time: Choose a time when your baby is usually active, preferably around the same time each day.

- Get Comfortable: Sit or lie in a comfortable position and begin tracking movements.

- Count Every Movement: Kicks, rolls, flutters, and wiggles all count! Track how long it takes to feel 10 movements.

- Make It a Routine: Use a notebook or the free Count the Kicks app to learn your baby's normal movement patterns.

- Trust Your Instincts! If your baby is moving less than usual, movements feel weaker, or something just doesn't feel right, contact your healthcare provider or labor and delivery unit immediately. Don't wait until tomorrow or your next appointment.

Black Maternal and Fetal Health Matters! Black families experience disproportionate rates of stillbirth in the United States. Every family deserves to have their concerns heard, taken seriously, and addressed promptly.

Your voice matters. Your concerns matter. Your baby's movements matter.

Share this information with an expectant mother, partner, family member, or village supporter. Together, we can promote healthier pregnancies and brighter beginnings!

Learn more and download the FREE Count the Kicks app at www.countthekicks.org.

10/15/2026

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month: Fighting Together, Standing Strong!

Black Women, Our Health Matters! This October, we honor the fighters, celebrate the survivors, remember those we've lost, and stand alongside those currently navigating their breast cancer journey.

Breast cancer does not discriminate, but its impact is not experienced equally. Black women are approximately 40% more likely to die from breast cancer than White women, despite having a slightly lower overall incidence rate. These disparities remind us that awareness alone is not enough. We must advocate for early detection, equitable healthcare, timely treatment, and access to quality care.

Let's Fight Back with Knowledge, Action, and Sisterhood!

- Know Your Body: Become familiar with what is normal for you. Report any unusual changes, lumps, or concerns to your healthcare provider.

- Prioritize Screenings: For women at average risk, mammograms are generally recommended every two years beginning at age 40. Talk with your healthcare provider about your personal risk and the screening schedule that's right for you.

- Know Your Family History: Understanding your family's cancer history can help you and your healthcare provider make informed decisions about screening and prevention.

- Advocate for Yourself: Your concerns deserve to be heard. Ask questions, request follow-up, and seek a second opinion when needed.

- Support Your Village: Encourage your mothers, daughters, sisters, aunties, friends, and loved ones to prioritize their breast health. Offer to accompany someone to an appointment, provide childcare, or simply be a listening ear.

Our strength is undeniable, but we should not have to be strong at the expense of our health. We deserve to be heard, believed, supported, and provided with compassionate, culturally responsive healthcare.

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, let's turn awareness into action, silence into advocacy, and sisterhood into support.

Because Black women's lives matter. Our health matters. And our futures are worth fighting for!

For more information and/or support check out Sisters Network Inc., African American Breast Cancer Alliance, Sisters By Choice, Inc. ( Official Page), Carrie's TOUCH, Inc., and For the Breast of Us.

10/05/2026

OCTOBER IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH

Sometimes unhealthy behaviors are mistaken for signs of love, passion, or protection. Healthy love should never require you to give up your safety, identity, dignity, or freedom.

Healthy love does not seek power over you. Healthy love makes space for you to remain fully YOU.

During Domestic Violence Awareness Month, check in with yourself, and check in with the people you love. Sometimes support begins with simply saying: “I’m here. I believe you. You deserve to feel safe.”

If you or your loved one needs some support, here are some local resources: Victims Empowerment Support Team VEST, Family Justice Center Solano, and SafeQuest Solano

10/01/2026

October is Infant Safe Sleep and SIDS Awareness Month!

This year's theme is: Safe Sleep. Strong Families. Brighter Futures.

Every baby deserves a safe place to sleep, and safe sleep is a responsibility shared by the entire village.

When it’s time for sleep, remember:
🤎 Back to Sleep: Place baby on their back for every nap and every night.
🤎 Firm Surface: Use a crib, bassinet, or portable play yard with a firm, flat mattress and fitted sheet.
🤎 Keep It Empty: No pillows, blankets, stuffed animals, toys, or bumper pads.
🤎 Room Share, Don’t Bed Share: Keep baby’s sleep space close to you, but separate from adult beds, couches, and chairs.
🤎 Arrived at Your Destination? Move Baby: If baby falls asleep in a car seat or stroller, move them to a firm, flat, safe sleep surface once you reach your destination.

Don’t keep this information to yourself; share it with your village! Grandparents, aunties, uncles, siblings, godparents, babysitters, friends, childcare providers, and anyone else who may care for your baby should know and follow the same safe sleep practices. Consistency matters. Safe sleep shouldn’t change depending on whose house the baby is visiting or who is caring for them.

For Black families, this conversation is especially important. Black infants continue to experience disproportionately high rates of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID). Raising awareness is not about blame; it is about making sure families and communities have access to clear, consistent, culturally responsive information that can help protect our babies.

Safe sleep is community care. When the whole village knows better, we can work together to create safer sleep environments for every baby.

Safe Sleep. Strong Families. Brighter Futures.

09/16/2026

Join Solano County's Black Infant Health Program's Mocha Mommas Thrive as we connect with community through exchanging lightly used and new baby and mom items, as well as resources.

We can't wait to see you on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM at the Fairfield Civic Center Library in the Becker Balmer Meeting Room located at 1150 Kennedy Street, Fairfield, CA 94533.

08/07/2026

Mocha Mommas Thrive is welcoming new moms! If you know a Black mom who is pregnant or parenting, share this opportunity to connect, find support, and access community resources. Register here and details are on the attached flyer. Plus, stay connected here on Remind or through our BAND (https://band.us/n/adabb4A6Z8p3s) community for updates, announcements, and resources!

05/27/2026

May is Water Safety Awareness Month.

Did you know: Black children are 3x more likely to drown than their white counterparts? This means that Black children make up nearly 20-23% of all fatal child drownings.

The 5 major reasons include:

1. Historically, Black people were not allowed to go to public pools,
2. Misguided cultural thoughts that swimming isn't a Black hobby,
3. Inherited fear of drowning due to slavery,
4. Disinterest in swimming due to their parents not knowing how to swim, and
5. The reluctance to getting straightened hair wet.

It is a great time to have conversations with your children about water safety in preparation of Summer. During summer months, swimming lessons are available through the local Park & Recreations Department for a small fee.

Benicia Community Services - Recreation

City of Dixon, CA

City of Fairfield Parks & Recreation

City of Rio Vista

Greater Vallejo Recreation District

Suisun City Recreation, Parks & Marina Department

Vacaville Parks and Recreation

05/26/2026

💙🤎 Join Us for a Special Father’s Day Celebration! 🤎💙

Solano’s Black Infant Health Program & Fighting Back Partnership in Vallejo, CA () invite fathers, bonus fathers, grandfathers, uncles, godfathers, cousins, and father figures to an evening of appreciation, connection, and family fun!

We recognize and celebrate the men who show up with love, guidance, strength, and support; helping shape healthy families and brighter futures every day.

Wednesday, June 17, 2026, 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
JFK Library: The Joseph Room located at 505 Santa Clara St., Vallejo, CA 94590

Bring the whole family and join us for an uplifting evening celebrating the incredible dads and father figures in our community! 💫

05/26/2026

As Mental Health Awareness Month wraps up, the Solano County Black Infant Health Program wants to remind families that emotional wellness starts early, and every child deserves to feel seen, safe, supported, and loved.

Big feelings in little people are real. Helping children identify emotions, build healthy coping skills, and feel connected to trusted adults creates a strong foundation for lifelong mental and emotional well-being.

Take a moment to watch and reflect on this powerful clip:
“How to Support Children’s Emotional Well-Being” (https://youtu.be/sdACgV2Tx7s).

As parents, caregivers, family members, and community supports, we all play a role in nurturing emotionally healthy children. Small moments of listening, affirming, comforting, and showing up consistently matter more than we know.

Elmo and friends show how humming can help support people’s emotional well-being. Sesame Workshop, the global impact nonprofit behind Sesame Street, launched...

05/11/2026