Pinellas County parents with babies and toddlers can get free bags of books, toys and brain-building activities through Turbo Babies, a program run by the Clearwater-headquartered Juvenile Welfare Board that is now expanding into preschools countywide.

The program targets families with children from birth to age 3 and asks nothing in return except a parent's time. Enrollment is free. Any Pinellas family can sign up by emailing [email protected].

"We were presented with the jaw-dropping statistic that 80 percent of brain growth occurs in the first three years of life," Elicia Hinson, JWB's associate manager of marketing, said in a JWB-sponsored feature published Aug. 4 by 83 Degrees Media. "The board decided to do something to support this crucial time in life and equip parents with the tools to encourage their baby's healthy brain development."

What's in the "Pit Crew" Bag and How the Program Works

Each enrolled family receives a "Pit Crew" bag stocked with books, toys and activities built around four daily habits: tune in, talk and repeat, take turns and take time. The idea is that face-to-face interaction, not screens, drives the roughly 1 million new neural connections forming every second in a baby's brain during those first three years.

A Local Mother Describes Her Daughter's Progress

Monica Parrish, 36, said she heard about the program through word of mouth and has used the resources with her daughter Maylani since birth.

Maylani is now 2.

"Her vocabulary is off the meters," Parrish said. "When she was developmentally supposed to say only 10 words, she was naming every person she came in contact with, animals and objects."

JWB Also Offers a Free Digital Safety Subscription

JWB, headquartered at 14155 58th St. North in Clearwater, also offers families a free one-year digital safety subscription through its partnership with Parent ProTech, available at jwbpinellas.org/parent-protech.

The preschool expansion does not have a published timeline or list of participating schools. JWB described it only as reaching "preschools across Pinellas County."

Upcoming Community Programs

  • Turbo Babies enrollment: Free and ongoing for families with children birth to age 3. Email [email protected].
  • Parent ProTech digital safety subscription: Free one-year access for Pinellas families at jwbpinellas.org/parent-protech.