Meriden Woman Awarded Casey Excellence For Children Award

MERIDEN, CT — A Meriden woman was recently awarded a Casey Excellence for Children Award.

The national award recognizes individuals who have made a significant impact in building hope and making a difference in the lives of children and families engaged with the child welfare system, according to officials.

Dee Bonnick, of Meriden, has been awarded the Birth Mother Award for building hope and making a difference in the lives of children and families involved with the child welfare system.

“Dee Bonnick’s lived and professional experience in child welfare spans most of her life,” officials wrote in a news release. “Ms. Bonnick grew up in kinship care with a grandmother who fostered and adopted children. She is a national lived experience expert and an educational advocate for Connecticut’s State Department of Education. Ms. Bonnick is the mother of three adult children, Janeé, Shaquan and Jayda.”

Bonnick works as a parent consultant on a national level and as a surrogate parent/educational advocate for Connecticut’s State Department of Education, advocating for students who are in the foster care system.

For Bonnick’s full biography and video, visit here.

Read more about the Casey Excellence for Children Awards from the press release below:

Casey Family Programs, the nation’s largest operating foundation focused on safely reducing the need for foster care and building Communities of Hope for children and families, announced the recipients of its 2025 national awards.

The Casey Excellence for Children Awards recognize individuals and organizations for their leadership and commitment to improving the lives of children and families involved with the child welfare system. They are named in honor of Jim Casey, the founder of United Parcel Service, who established Casey Family Programs in 1966 as an operating foundation to help improve the safety and success of children and their families across America.

Awards are given in the following categories:

• Family and Alumni: These awards are presented to alumni of foster care, resource parents, kinship caregivers and birth parents who have demonstrated extraordinary efforts to improve the lives of children and families.
• Leadership: These awards recognize child welfare leaders and change-makers who have had a significant impact in improving the lives of children and families and building Communities of Hope.

“These outstanding individuals are making a profound impact in improving the lives of those involved with the child welfare system,” said Walter Howard Smith, Jr., Chairman of the Board of Trustees. “Thanks to their efforts, children are safer, families are stronger and communities are in a better position to support them.”

Dr. William C. Bell, President and CEO of Casey Family Programs, said: “This year’s honorees all share a passion for improving the lives of children and families. This heartfelt commitment to ensuring children and families have what they need to thrive is the essence of what it means to build Communities of Hope.”

The mission of Casey Family Programs is to provide and improve — and ultimately prevent the need for — foster care. For nearly 60 years, the foundation has worked with children and families to improve life outcomes and well-being. Today, Casey Family Programs works with child welfare systems and other partners in all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and with tribal nations across North America to influence long-lasting improvements to the safety and success of children, families and the communities where they live.

2025 Casey Excellence for Children Family and Alumni Awards

View recipients’ full biographies and video stories at casey.org/ceca.