Christmas isn’t over yet for soon-to-be parents in Cherry Hill.

Parents of 2026 babies can apply for $1,500, no strings attached, to help with the costs of birthing and raising a newborn. The funds are part of the Cherry Hill Baby Bonus program, which will be primarily funded at first by the Maryland Child Alliance and administered by the nonprofit Cherry Hill Strong.

The Maryland Child Alliance is the advocacy group behind the Baltimore Baby Fund, an effort to establish a dedicated pot of money to help city families with newborns. The alliance previously backed a similar idea that was rejected by the Maryland Supreme Court in 2024 before a ballot question could reach voters. The revamped effort is 2,000 signatures short of appearing on November’s ballot.

In the meantime, Baltimore Baby Fund campaign manager Emily Yu said the Maryland Child Alliance received a $20,000 private donation at the beginning of 2025. Leaders knew they wanted to get that money into the hands of those parenting newborns and connected with Cherry Hill Strong, a community development nonprofit for the primarily Black neighborhood.

“Cherry Hill is one of the most underserved and impoverished neighborhoods in Baltimore City. And so we think that’s a great place to start,” Yu said. “I don’t think anyone can argue that those in Cherry Hill are receiving enough.”

The initial $20,000 covers disbursements for 13 kids. Yu said they anticipate about 150 kids will be born in Cherry Hill next year. Cherry Hill Strong is going to kick in some money, she said, and the program will eventually solicit donations to get them to the $225,000 needed to run the Cherry Hill Baby Bonus through 2026.

The program is open to all parents with a Cherry Hill address. They’re eligible for the money one month before or after their child is born, and funds will be loaded onto a prepaid debit card.

Many Baltimore families need the help. The city’s median household income is just under $65,000, about $40,000 below the state’s. And Baltimore families would need an extra 10 million diapers a year to keep their babies dry and healthy.

Yu said program leaders hope they can connect parents who get this money with other support, like B’More for Healthy Babies, Cherry Hill Strong’s Barrier Mitigation Fund for fiscal emergencies and the USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, known as WIC. They also hope to disrupt the narrative that poor parents don’t know how to support their kids.

“That ultimately is our goal: To make sure that the birthing parent has the support they need to be able to raise their child healthily,” Yu said. “That is really what we’re hoping to show, is that the money actually helps and that it will be used in some way to help the family.”

Cherry Hill parents can apply online for the funds starting Jan. 1.

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