Service Groups and Faith Alliance
Foster Care
May 18, 2021
Attendees:
Kim Adcock ,Ryan Doherty, Wanda Reives, Kimaree Sanders ,Cheryl Stallings, Dean Duncan, Nancy Hagan, Sonya
Edwards, Mary Mackins, Mindy Varkevisser, Jodi Bailey, Danica Coleman,Britney Williams, Nicole Dozier, Deb Vinci, Jodi Bailey, Elizabeth Hunter
Announcements:
White Oak Foundation will provide tutoring June 13-Aug 14, on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:00-7:30. If you know of a student who may have fallen behind during the pandemic and in need of academic help over the summer please contact Juanita Young at juanita.young31@yahoo.com or 919-362-6799. In addition, if you know of any teachers who might be interested in providing their services, please let them know per diem will be paid.
Ms. Adcock informed us thatMay is National Foster Care Month. She emphasized the fact that foster care offers support to families and is not meant to be a substitute for birth parents. The plan is also to reunite the children with their parents. The Five Protective Factors were reviewed from last month’s meeting: parental resilience, social connections, knowledge of parent and child dev, concrete support in terms of need, social connections.
Data for Wake County:
- ● 488 children are in foster care.
- ● 397 children are under 18 years old and 91 are age 18 to 21 years old.
- ● Race/ethnicity: 225 are African American, 66 are Latino, 50 are Multiracial, and100 are White.
Nicole Bernard, Officer Kenneth Ragland, Niki Miller,
Meeting Minutes
Summary:
Kim Adcock, of Wake County Child Welfare, spoke to us about foster care.
- ● Ages 4 -12 is the biggest age group followed by 13-17 year olds. Ms Adcock mentioned that 13-17 are very vulnerable ages and this group is at a higher risk for trafficking.
- ● Foster Homes: Regular (115), ICPC (12), kinship (22)
- ● Most homes are full and more homes are needed
- ● Apex has 14 licensed homes
- ● The biggest needs are for home in the 27610 zip code and homes for 13-18 yearolds, sibling groups and those who are medically fragile. Requirements for becoming a Foster Parent in Wake County
- ● Must be 21
- ● Wake County resident
- ● Stable home and income
- ● Adequate sleeping space (own bed without sharing with biological kids
- ● Background check
- ● Willing to engage in shared-parenting
- ● Open heart and mindEvents for Foster Care Month (May):
- · May 4 FC kickoff
- · May 11 monthly info session
- · May 19Door knocker campaign
- · May 21 foster parent drive thru
- · Awareness information available at Public Libraries all month How can you help:
- · Volunteer
- · Word of mouth
- · Inform
- · Congratulate for Foster Parent appreciation
- · Raise Hope: Foster4wake@wakegov.com 919-212-7474
Introduction of Sonya Edwards, Foster Parent for 25 year and volunteers with Shield NC.
Ms. Edwards finds foster parenting very rewarding and considers it a ministry though it can be challenging at times. She emphasized that kids need us, caring adults. She explained that a monthly stipend check to ease financial needs is provided.
There are currently six kids living in the child welfare office building because they don’t have a home and have been there 6-7 months sleeping on air mattresses. This is not good for the kids. The kids really need TLC, discipline, structure, and to know they are heard and cared for.
Q&A
- Has Covid impacted the number of children in foster care? Ms Adcock says that her department hasn’t seen the impact of COVID as yet but they expect to see an increase. Since educators are the biggest source of reports to CPS, having no interaction in the school environment so this is contributing to the lull in reports.
- Where are referrals from? Educators are primary reporters.
- How many referrals for children are coming out of trafficking situations? How longwill they be in foster care? Goal is within 1 year, however other issues mayrequire rebuilding the support system.
- How soon do foster children gain access to health care and mental health care?Ms. Adcock answered that the children are seen by health care providers within the first 7 days and provided services they may need. She explains that the first thirty days in foster care are usually intense as professionals address the many needs the children have due to their history of neglect.
- Is it important to keep children in the areas where they were living before being taken into care? Yes. The children need to stay connected to the same school, medical providers, outside activities, family and friends. The goal is to reunify so moving the children to a different area would complicate the achievement of that goal.
- How can churches help with this? There are 1700 churches in Wake County – Imagine what it would be like if every church had 1 foster family and was able to provide support for the family by helping with daycare, setting up a meal train, being an emotional support and providing reinforcement of values. It would be a game changer!
Ms Adcock reports that “shared parenting”, between foster parents and birth parents, is necessary and requires ongoing communication. The attachment between birth parents and child must be maintained, and the example of birth and foster parent cooperating is
so important. 43% of birth parents were in foster care themselves at some point in their life. Foster families are a lifelong relationship.
The frequency of foster kids running away from their foster parents is an issue that needs to be addressed. Collaboration is key. This is not the fault of Foster Parents but education is needed on human trafficking for foster parents to understand the dangers.
Personal story from Ms. Edwards: She once fostered 2 male children. One of them went on to graduate from college. He then returned home to help his birth mother care for his younger brother: The other male child she fostered, joined the Navy,attended nursing school. After becoming a LPN, he also returned home to encourage his sister to go to nursing school. His mother got sick and he and his sister cared for their mother.
A female child that Ms. Edwards fostered, returned home to care for her younger sister while in college. In Ms. Edwards, experience, the foster children often take on a parent role for their birth parents. Kim commended Sonya on her success with this difficult family situation.
Ms. Adcock stressed the fact that foster parents must have the belief that people can change. Otherwise, their negativity affects the foster children. Birth parents usually don’t know how to meet the children’s needs and are grieving. It is important that the foster parent continue to patiently work with birth parents and provide support.
Churches in our area who support foster families:
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Apex Baptist has a foster care and adoption ministry called Village 127. Drew Stallworth from Apex Baptist will share more with us about their ministry soon.
Jodi Bailey from Summit Church shared that this week they will host a Renew Retreat for foster families (200 people signed up so far). https://renewretreat.org She shares that foster parents need support. Summit Church has volunteers who reach out and love these families. Also to help reach the community, on June 12 Summit will host a Family Fun Day for Foster Care Families. If you know of anyone who would be interested please have them register. https://summitchurch.com/event/1501 How to get started? Jodi graciously offered to share with other churches how to get started with this type of ministry. She said the main need is volunteers with the willingness to do the work. Jbailey @summitchurch.com
ShieldNC – Nicole says vulnerabilities she sees for trafficking often tie back to fostering and this would help to stop them early on.
Child Abuse of NC spoke last month about hosting a community café and gathering stakeholders to discuss how to address the vulnerabilities Apex citizens are experiences, especially those created by the pandemic . Reach out to Shield NC if you are interested in being a part of the planning of Apex’s Community Cafe event.