Foster Care | Foster-Adoption
All children need a committed and loving family to help them thrive in life. Young people in foster care especially need nurturing adults on their side because their own families are in crisis and unable to care for them. At no fault of their own, children placed in foster care have been exposed to abuse, endangerment, or neglect and are separated from their home, their schools, and sometimes their siblings. While some children are able to be reunited with their birth parents or extended family members, many of them stay in the system awaiting a forever family. There are over 250 children in foster care in Placer County and over 2,300 children in Sacramento County alone. The need for stable, loving, Christian families to take in foster children is especially urgent as California legislation has called for closure of all lower level group homes in 2017.
The Response
As Christians we must not stand back and watch our youth be raised by government organizations. We are called to open our homes to those without families or safe places to stay. However, bringing a foster child into your home comes with many questions and challenges. Our regional leaders and supportive foster agencies can help interested families walk through the training and certification process, understand the emotional and physical requirements of taking in a child, and plug into numerous post-placement resources.
Emily Kaiser - Foster Care/Adoption Program Director
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Jessica Miller - Foster Care Supervising Social Worker
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The Need
Agape Villages Foster Family Agency
Agape Villages is a licensed foster family agency placing children in foster homes in communities throughout Northern California. They accept referrals from California’s Department of Social Services, Child Protective Services and County Mental Health Departments. Agape Villages is also a licensed adoption agency, serving families, children and youth through the permanency of adoption.
Lilliput
Lilliput exists to ensure every child has the opportunity to be part of a safe, nurturing, lifelong family. They are a leading provider of foster, adoption and kinship services in California, working with multiple county child welfare departments to reduce the length of time a child spends in foster care before reconnecting safely with a family of their own.
Stanford Sierra Youth & Families
Stanford Sierra Youth & Families is a private, non-profit agency that facilitates the development of forever families by making the best possible connections between children and families. Their mission is to transform the lives of children in foster care by building and nurturing permanent families and their goal is to equip children and parents for success.
kinship Care | kinship adoption
Over 600,000 grandparents in California are raising their grandchildren - the highest such statistic in the country. It's not just grandparents tackling this responsibility, but other relatives and family friends as well. These children are not all dependents, which means there are many needs that can go unmet in a kinship family simply because of lack of information, support or connection. Rarely are families prepared for a situation like this. Kinship caregivers often find themselves feeling alone and isolated, without knowledge of the support available to them. However, studies show that when a child is placed with a relative they are likely to have a more stable placement than one in an unrelated foster family, they are less likely to be separated from their siblings, they maintain community, cultural and family connections and more likely to find permanency through guardianship or adoption if reunification with their parents is not possible. This also has direct impact on a decrease in juvenile homelessness, delinquency, teen pregnancy, alcohol and drug abuse and rates of incarceration. Therefore, the value of kinship placements should not be overlooked.
The Need
The Response
The biggest need in kinship placements and adoptions is support. Often letting a kinship caregiver know that they are not alone has more impact than one could begin to imagine. Secondly, connecting them to resources, support groups and other programs available to them can be helpful in meeting tangible needs the families may have. Kinship caregivers are often willing to go above and beyond to support their kin child and having support there to assist them in that process can mean the difference between families surviving and thriving. If you already know or come across a grandma, grandpa, aunt, uncle, or extended family member caring for a child that is not their immediate offspring, look for ways to encourage them and meet their needs.
Kelsey Dahlin - Kinship Social Worker
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American River College FKCE
The Foster and Kinship Care Education Program (FKCE) provides free parenting training for foster parents and interested non-foster parents. American River College has a specialized program with free trainings for foster care and kinship care providers covering a wide array of information from basic info on trauma to advanced parenting courses and more.
Kinship care California
Have you opened your heart and home to a relative’s child? Kinship Care California is here to connect you to the services your family needs. Find local resources and best-fit service providers, online, by phone with a dedicated and highly trained customer care staff, or by text, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Lilliput Kinship Support Services
The Kinship Support Services Program (KSSP) at Lilliput is designed to provide support to kinship families - particularly those formed voluntarily, without the assistance of a child welfare agency. Rarely are families prepared for a situation like this and that's where KSSP can help. KSSP provides resources and also helps connect families in similar situations.
Sierra College FKCE
Sierra College provides state approved trainings for Pre and Post licensing requirements required to be a Foster, Adoptive or Kinship care provider. In addition to trainings, Sierra FKCE provides support services to help families navigate the licensing training process and support the relative children in their care.
Aging out youth
Upon their 18th birthday foster youth are thrust into adulthood—ready or not. A place to live, food, clothing, a job, a driver’s license, transportation, school, and any future dreams or goals they have are now their sole responsibility. Fortunately, county funding has recently been extended allowing youth to choose to remain in the system and receive some support, but challenges can still be overwhelming. Basic life skills for budgeting, cooking, time management, job hunting and stress reduction are often lacking. Add to that the tendency towards anxiety, depression or other health issues that occur when one grows up in a trauma-filled environment, and you have youth who are unprepared to navigate the world before them.
The Need
The Response
There are resources available to youth aging out of foster care but the challenge is getting them to engage. After years of forced social services intervention, many of these young adults are not willing to seek help from social workers or “programs”. The key to changing the frightening statistics for foster youth as they age-out of the system is for them to connect with trustworthy adults who can help them navigate their world, access resources, make good choices, and ultimately feel supported and accepted.
Shelly Bokman - Blossom Place Director, Sacramento Parent Magazine Editor
Click on the picture to read Shelly's bio or e-mail her at:
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Blossom Place is non-profit ministry in Auburn, California. Their goal is to provide housing, resources and support to girls aging out of foster care.
The goal of Bridge Network is to connect at-risk and vulnerable youth with community partners to promote better outcomes by developing and modeling healthy relationships. Their programs include mentoring, advocacy, an extended learning program and a drop-in center for teens.
Compassion Planet offers help, hope and practical tools to at-risk teens and aged-out foster youth in the greater Sacramento area. Their goal is to empower undeserved young adults by equipping them to reach their full potential. Check out their Compassion Planet Thrift store or Deer Creek Farm boutique.
Annually at Sierra College, 75-125 former foster youth pursue their dreams of higher education and the goal of the Guardian Scholars Program is to help them overcome barriers to success through scholarships, housing stipends, laptops, care packages and more!
Taylor House empowers independence by teaching essential life skills and offering affordable rents to transitioning Foster Girls ages 18-21.
Private adoption
In our current culture, there are many situations where a teenager or young woman may find herself pregnant and unprepared to meet the needs of the child she is carrying. As these women wrestle with their options of abortion versus adoption, many of them want to value life but need to know there are loving families who are ready and waiting to adopt these precious babies. Along the journey of pregnancy, these young ladies also need support, encouragement, and hope that the life they created will be cared for.
The Need
The Response
When a family decides to open up their hearts and their home to a child through private adoption they are making a statement of the value of life. These parents are often seeking a newborn or infant to add to their family and have been waiting and praying for the Lord to bring just the right child into their home. The process of private adoption begins by choosing an adoption agency then completing a home study, preparing a family book, and waiting for the call that they have been selected. All throughout this process, families are living out the gospel as they demonstrate the importance of adoption in God’s plan.
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Private Adoption Agencies
Bethany Christian Services is a nonprofit organization that brings families together and keeps families together. Strengthening families for the well-being of children is our top priority. Their services include adoption, foster care, and pregnancy counseling.
Faithful Adoption Consultants is a faith-based referral service based in Atlanta, Georgia. They assist adoptive families nationwide who are seeking an infant through domestic adoption. They exist to walk alongside Christian families as they obey the calling of adoption placed on their lives.
Familybuilding’s mission is to restore lives and generational lines through adoption and guardianship by strategically placing children in stable, loving homes. They advocate for the highest level of legal security and permanence for each child, while pursuing the greatest degree of restorative justice for birth parent(s). They offer comprehensive legal guidance to adoptive couples, relatives or a step parent seeking to adopt, foster parents, and anyone concerned about the well being of children in need. Familybuilding is also a free resource for birth mothers who are seeking knowledgeable, caring information about independent and agency adoption.
The Family Network, Inc. is a nonprofit, Hague-Accredited, adoption agency currently licensed in the State of California for domestic, international, embryo and foster adoption services in the state of California. Their staff of social workers and adoption professionals is committed to helping families through every step of the adoption process.
Little Angel Adoptions provides hope to struggling birth mothers and adoptive parents by bringing worlds together. For over 15 years they've helped birth mothers find the perfect family for their little angel.
Private Adoption Fundraising
Both Hands' purpose is to help Christian adoptive families fund their adoptions by coordinating a service project fixing up a widow's home. Their vision is to see the day when finances are not an obstacle for Christian families who are led to adopt, while simultaneously serving every widow in need of home repairs.
Lifesong seeks to mobilize the Church, His body, where each member can provide a unique and special service: some to adopt, some to care, some to give. They offer tax-deductible adoption fund accounts as well as adoption grants.
Show Hope believes that each child has the inherent, God-given right to be a part of a loving, caring family. Their work is dedicated to restoring hope to millions of children living as orphans by breaking down barriers between waiting children and loving families. They offer pre-adoption support and adoption financial aid.
international adoption
The need for international adoption is almost incomprehensible. Estimates show that, around the world, there are over 150 million orphans due to poverty, lack of education, war, famine, and disease. In Africa, orphans typically have lost their parents to AIDS while, in China, these precious children have been abandoned by their families in what has been described as “a tragic act of love” due to governmental or societal pressures. Each little life has been affected by tragedy and these children are left wondering if they matter and waiting for a family who would love them. Although the number of orphans world-wide is vast, God knows each one of these precious children and He lovingly calls them by name.
The Need
The Response
The answer is to the international orphan crisis are Christians willing to take in these children and make them part of a “forever family”. As God has accepted and adopted you into His family, the Lord calls many of us to do the same for the children around the world with no hope of returning to their parents. While there are great challenges and often long wait-times for international adoption, when you talk with families who have brought children home from countries like Ethiopia, Russia, China, and Haiti God’s redemption story always shines through the joy, laughter, and love received in these homes. Ultimately, the hope is that Christians in every nation will rise as the main answer to the needs of the orphans in their midst, glorifying God as a reflection of His great love for the orphan, and for us.
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Click on the picture to read Nancy's bio!
International Adoption Agencies
recommended resources
AGIC is an international and domestic adoption agency. Their ultimate goal is for every child to know the love of a family by providing care in family-like orphanages, family preservation, reunification, adoption and supported independence programs.
FCCA exists to assist the waiting children of the world into permanent, loving families. It is their belief that God's love is best expressed in the family. The work of FCCA is a living expression of love for Jesus Christ and for the homeless children throughout the world.
Around the world, Holt provides individualized, child-focused services in three main programs: family strengthening, orphan and vulnerable children care and adoption services. They seek a world where every child has a loving and secure home.
The mission of Lifeline is to equip the body of Christ to manifest the gospel to orphaned and vulnerable children. They do this through Adoption, Fostering, Empowering the local churches to support the (un)adopted, adoption support, resources, and funding adoptions.
International Adoption Fundraising
Both Hands' purpose is to help Christian adoptive families fund their adoptions by coordinating a service project fixing up a widow's home. Their vision is to see the day when finances are not an obstacle for Christian families who are led to adopt, while simultaneously serving every widow in need of home repairs.
Brittany's Hope is a non-profit organization dedicated to aiding and facilitating the adoption of special needs children from around the world by raising funds to help lower the cost of adopting special needs kids.
Katelyn’s Fund brings orphan awareness to others, provides emotional and prayer support to families, and assists Christian families with the high costs of adoptions. As they seek to capture the heart of adoption, they are devoted to actively and boldly speak of God’s loving call for us as His adoptive children.
Lifesong seeks to mobilize the Church, His body, where each member can provide a unique and special service: some to adopt, some to care, some to give. They offer tax-deductible adoption fund accounts as well as adoption grants.
Noonday Collection is a socially responsible business that uses fashion to create meaningful opportunities around the world. They give 10% of Adoption Trunk Show sales to help adopting families bring their children home.
Show Hope believes that each child has the inherent, God-given right to be a part of a loving, caring family. Their work is dedicated to restoring hope to millions of children living as orphans by breaking down barriers between waiting children and loving families. They offer pre-adoption support and adoption financial aid.