May 2026 Grantee Spotlight

Honoring Nurse Home Visitors for National Nurses Week

Supporting Hands Nurse-Family Partnership

Parenting can be challenging, and the team at Supporting Hands Nurse-Family Partnership is grateful for the chance to walk alongside parents, offering support that helps them build confidence, strengthen resilience, and nurture their children's health and development.

The Nurse-Family Partnership is a program that connects first-time mothers with a nurse who will provide the support, advice, and information needed to have a healthy pregnancy, a healthy baby, and be a great mom.

Supporting Hands serves families across 21 counties in Minnesota, providing mothers with a free, evidence-based program from pregnancy through their child’s second birthday. Since 2008, this team has been dedicated to helping families experience healthy pregnancies, promote positive early childhood development, and gain greater economic stability.

Minnesota counties served by SHNFP. Source: Counties Served | Supporting Hands Nurse-Family Partnership Program (https://shnfp.org/service-area/)

Working directly with families across Big Stone, Chippewa, Douglas, Grant, Kandiyohi, Lac qui Parle, Lincoln, Lyon, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Pipestone, Pope, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Sibley, Stevens, Swift, Traverse, and Yellow Medicine counties, the Supporting Hands Nurse-Family Partnership sees the positive impact home visiting can have every day.

The trust families place in the home visiting team is a privilege, and their progress and successes are the reason the folks at the Partnership do this work.

Jody, RN, PHN, Nurse Home Visitor, three years with SHNFP

SHNFP is unique in that it allows the client to learn about topics that interest them. This keeps clients engaged and allows them to have autonomy in their lives. Being a nurse home visitor allows me to do what I love most-support, educate and advocate. It's an honor to walk alongside my clients and watch them grow into incredible mothers! One special highlight is that we’ve had three sisters complete and graduate from our program.

Alisae, Yasmi, Alyssa, and their kiddos.

“I feel grateful to have had Jody as our nurse She always provided me with answers to my questions and made the program fun through the activities we did together.” (Alisae, left)

“My nurse Jody didn’t just guide me, she truly cared and stood by me during a time when I needed it most … it helped me become the mother I am today.” (Yasmi, middle)

“I had Cece during COVID…so we were pretty isolated. Having a nurse to check in with and ask questions made a big difference in my postpartum experience and helped me navigate those early days of motherhood.” (Alyssa, right)

Solveig, RN, PHN, CLC, Nurse Home Visitor, eight years with SHNFP

Solveig with Jasmine and her daughter at the Summer Park Meetup.

I love the real relationships, and care that is not rushed. Instead of short-term interactions, I enjoy building long-term relationships with families, it’s often a 2 ½ year timeframe that I get to interact with my families. Home visiting lets me understand a client’s environment, culture, and daily challenges in a way acute care settings can’t. I am a part of directly contributing to healthier communities, especially when working with moms and their children. A highlight is hosting our annual Summer Park Meetup, where families enjoy connections and the company of other SHNFP families, spend time with their nurses, and have fun with outside play and family activities.

To learn more about how Jody and Solveig support families in their work, listen to their interview from Stories from the Field: A Home Visitor - Making a Difference in the Early Years.