Connect U Newsletter - October 2024 |
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We will provide information as we can. Please check for updates on our social media sites on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
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Now is the time to use NFPA's critical Network of Support to assist our friends in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina
Hurricane Helene came at us with all she had and some of our foster, kinship and adoptive parents have been displaced and have lost much of their essentials for basic needs. Please do what you can to support these folks to help them get back on their feet and safely housed.
Thank you for any help you can provide.
Arnie Eby
Executive Director, NFPA |
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Our Fellow Foster, Kinship and Adoptive Parents in Florida, Georgia and North Carolina
Need Our Help! |
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NORTH CAROLINA FOSTER FAMILY ALLIANCE NEEDS OUR HELP!
https://ffa-nc.networkforgood.com/projects/235477-hurricane-helene-relief
From our fellow foster, kinship and adoptive parents at the Foster Family Alliance of North Carolina regarding the aftermath of Hurricane Helene:
“We are supporting resource families through tangible donations of water, non-perishable food, baby formula, diapers, wipes, cleaning supplies, etc.
We have a helicopter flying in tomorrow, a plane on Thursday, and several trailers taking the long way around on Sunday.
We are also help displaced families secure housing through hotels, AirBnBs, providing gas, gift cards and other needs as identified.
The simplest way for NFPA to support our work is by donating to our hurricane relief fund using this link: https://ffa-nc.networkforgood.com/projects/235477-hurricane-helene-relief. |
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Join NFPA's Board of Directors |
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5 Essential Core Supports for
Foster, Adoptive & Kinship Parents |
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What are your core support needs?
We have a valuable opportunity to shape the future of foster, adoptive and kinship care in the upcoming months. Our legislators are hearing us, and we are collaborating with them to provide better, and much needed support for family-based care. We have lived experience. We know what works and what doesn't work and we are using our voice to be sure our needs are heard. Do the Core Supports listed below match your needs?
Please take 15 minutes and add your thoughts to our NFPA Stakeholder Survey? |
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October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month |
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Balancing the safety of their children while maintaining family continuity is complex for parents. Continual, culturally sensitive assessment for domestic and family violence is crucial to safety, permanency, and well-being. As families make decisions about safety and service needs, caseworkers should partner with them to enhance safety and establish support networks. Children's Bureau Resources on Domestic Violence |
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Additional Resources on Domestic Violence Awareness |
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Congress declared the month of October to be Domestic Violence Awareness Month in 1989.
For DVAM 2024, the Domestic Violence Awareness Project is proud to build on the theme Heal, Hold & Center, first launched in 2023.
This year’s National Call for Unity is an opportunity for “Connective Action” around the DVAM 2024 theme, Heal, Hold & Center. This is an intentional pause and moment of recognition and togetherness for advocates and survivors across the country. This month consider and celebrate those in your circle who have conquered domestic violence.
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Hispanic Heritage Month Continues
(Sept 15 - Oct 15) |
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Today, Hispanics are the largest minority in the United States, with a median age of 30.7. Hispanic refers to a person with ancestry from a country with a Spanish language. Latinos are persons with origins in Latin American countries, Mexico, South and Central America, and the Caribbean.
Hispanic or Latino children comprise more than 1 in 5 of all foster children nationwide (The Anne E. Casey Foundation). It is estimated there are 85,000+ Hispanic or Latino children in foster care.
Learn More
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What's New in the Mental Health Hub? |
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The National Center Knowledge Hub is designed to mobilize knowledge into practice to improve child welfare and mental health systems. We add resources and new learning experiences to this Knowledge Hub on an ongoing basis. |
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Preventing Identity Theft for Foster Children |
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Imagine!
Can you imagine being a young adult getting ready to start living life on your own and not being able to qualify for a bank account, a job, benefits, or to be able to rent a place to live? All because someone has stolen your identity. Then what?
This is what many foster youth face when they age out of the system and start their lives as adults, because unbeknownst to them, their identity was stolen while they were in foster care.
What Can You Do to Help?
USE YOUR VOICE!
Help us understand what's important to you – take our SURVEY.
EDUCATE YOURSELF -
REVIEW the latest Government Reports from the Office of the Inspector General about foster children and credit checks.
ADVOCATE
Collaborate with your state or local foster parent organization to advocate your state legislature to:
- Conduct credit checks of all three credit reporting agencies (CRAs) for children aged 14 or older who are in foster care.
- Ensure that your state has the capacity to conduct credit checks and to interpret and resolve credit report issues effectively.
- Partner with other government agencies to develop strategies addressing issues that your state may have experienced working with credit reporting agencies (CRAs).
Thank you for your time, your help, and your interest in this important topic. |
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Thank You for Your Support!
Protecting America’s Children by Strengthening Families Act
Passes the House! |
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Sept. 19, 2024 I wanted to share a major thank you to you for your vital support for IV-B reauthorization and the Protecting America’s Children by Strengthening Families Act.
Today, the U.S. House passed this legislation by an overwhelming vote of 405-10! That absolutely is only possible because policymakers are hearing from all of you and your networks about how much this matters for children and families.
This is a key milestone, but much work remains ahead still to get this legislation through the U.S. Senate as well.
The work continues!!
Thanks, Arnie |
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The History of Foster Care and NFPA |
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Have you checked out NFPA’s most recent addition to the website (under the “About” tab)? A historical timeline of foster care and NFPA. Visit the timeline here.
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ANSWERS To Last Month's Newsletter Quiz
Here are a couple of questions for you from the Timeline with the answers in red.
1. What year was the first national conference on foster care? 1967 - U.S. Children’s Bureau funds the first National
Conference on Foster Care in New Orleans.
2. What year was the National Foster Parent Association launched? 1972
3. Which organization and government agency (that we still work with today) facilitated the creation of the NFPA? 1972 - U.S. Children’s Bureau awards a three-year
demonstration project grant to CWLA to officially launch the NFPA.
4. Which came first - The Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or, The Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children?
1870s - Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Children (created after the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals - SPCA) begins to appear in eastern cities.
5. TRICK QUESTION! What are the 5 Core Needs of foster, adoptive, and kinship parents that have come out of recent surveys? This was actually not in the History Timeline but is something we have been talking about in our communications (see chart above). Give yourself EXTRA credit if you got these right! |
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