Welcome to the 2018 October issue of Foster Family News, a monthly newsletter for current and potential Fairfax County foster parents.
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Whether you’re just starting out on your foster care journey, or you’ve been doing this for years, a strong support system is vital for your personal well-being. Foster care and adoption can be lonely at times. Sometimes, even the most well intentioned family and friends can have trouble relating to your experience and the daily challenges (and, of course, joys!) that go along with it–from both physical and mental standpoints. That’s why the Fairfax County Foster Care and Adoption Association (FCFCAA) exists. We are here to provide support as a group of people who have been in the trenches and “get” it.
As the new volunteer president of FCFCAA, I am a Fairfax County foster parent, just like many of you. My husband and I live in Alexandria, where we have been foster parents for about six years, and have had the honor of getting to know some amazing children--including our wonderful son whom we adopted through foster care!--and county workers over the years.
If you, too, are a Fairfax County foster or adoptive family, and you have not gotten involved with FCCAA, I strongly encourage you to do so. As a grassroots organization of volunteers, we are only as strong as our members–and we all have a role to play. The association is founded on the mission of providing a safe and supportive environment for all parents of adopted and foster children.
Perhaps you’ve just received a new placement, and you could use clothes or supplies. Or, now that the new school year has started, your child may be struggling academically, behaviorally, or socially, and you could use some advice from someone who’s been through it. Maybe you have questions and need help navigating the complicated foster system, or you’re simply interested in connecting with other foster or adoptive families in the area in a social setting. We can help you with all of that and more!
FCFCAA offers events—hosted by volunteers like you--throughout the year that give parents a chance to network, and the youth we support to have fun. We are also proud to host "The Closet," a free lending center offering clothes, baby gear, toys, sports equipment, and other critical supplies our foster families need for a surprise (or rapidly growing!) child.
For more information, visit the website where you can subscribe to our private mailing list. I also encourage you to join our Facebook group, where you can connect with others and stay up to speed on local events and training opportunities. For more information or questions, feel free to contact me directly at shivelys0105@gmail.com.
Bethany Shively
President
FCFCAA
Graduates are golden in Fairfax County! That’s why snagging an invitation to the Department of Family Services’ Annual Graduation Event is such a hot ticket.
“It’s really a big party. It is a celebration of their graduation,” said Natalie Sposato, a permanency coordinator in the Foster Care and Adoption Resource and Support Program, who coordinates the event.
The revelry, which includes guest speakers, food, games, raffle prizes, and music, extends to all the county’s graduates: high school, college, vocational certificate programs, and GED recipients.
Of course, there’s a lot of planning involved—from pulling together the logistics for the event to writing bios for each of the youth and creating graduate-specific swag bags--all of which is made possible with donations from CASA and Children's Fund.
“Gifts are coordinated to whatever their goal is,” Sposato said. “If they’re going away to college, we’ve purchased or had laptops donated. If they’re getting a cosmetology certificate, a Sally Beauty Supply card may be more beneficial than a laptop.”
The three-hour event is a feel-good moment for everyone involved.
“Each foster care and adoption specialist gets up and talks a little bit about their youth, sharing how they got to this point where they’re able to celebrate,” Sposato said. “Sometimes the youth will also share--how they came to graduate, shout-outs to their foster care and adoption specialist, providing inspiration to other friends who might be there, giving thanks to family members or foster parents. Often, we hear that piece of the ceremony is the best part.
“To be able to see these youth, many we’ve known for years, who may have struggled to get to this moment, there’s a sense of relief, a sense of celebration!”
The E.Y.E. (Educating Youth Through Employment) Program, a summer job readiness and paid work experience for Northern Virginia youth age 16 to 20 that started in 2006, got a companion this year.
In the E.Y.E. Program, which serves almost 200 youth each year, young people are able to have almost any job they can imagine. Fairfax County’s Children Youth and Families Division began participating in 2011 and sponsors about 30 of that number of youth. The other young people are sponsored by other agencies, including NCS, and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, an employment program run through SkillSource Centers.
When the program begins in early spring, youth fill out a two-page application and submit their top-three career choices, plus a career assessment. And then the program tries to find jobs that match. Young people have been placed everywhere from office administration in county government buildings to automotive repair at local shops, said Charisma Canty, life skills coordinator in Fairfax County’s Foster Care and Adoption program.
“We’ve had youth work at pet and grooming supply stores. A lot of youth have worked at childcare centers or even in medical office environments,” she said.
Even better than getting the job of choice is a guarantee of employment. As long as a young person is eligible for CSA funding, he or she is approved. Better still? Jobs in the program, which runs six to eight weeks every summer, pay $8 an hour and include career readiness workshops.
“Permanent employment is not guaranteed,” Canty said, “but we encourage youth to have those discussions with their worksites. Every year we have youth who get permanent positions with their worksites—if they want them.”
“This year we created an alternate program called E3—the Enrich, Educate and Empower program,” Canty explained. “That is also a job readiness experience and paid training opportunity for foster care youth only who are currently ineligible to work. It’s more classroom based.”
E3, designed as a partnership between CYF and Employment and Training, is a four-week program that takes place weekdays from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Due to changes in policy and some immigration issues, CYF found that a number of young people didn’t quality for E.Y.E.
“We wanted to provide them an opportunity to still earn a training stipend,” Canty said. “Instead of formally working, they are learning about careers and job shadowing.”
Participants learned about different careers and the skills required for those careers. They also completed a group project similar to that of Fairfax County’s Leadership Academy.
“The youth were very polished and did well,” Canty said. “A lot of the youth got emotional toward the end about how great the program was for them. They built close friendships and learned a lot about the workplace and their future careers.”
E3’s inaugural summer was a success, in part because of Foster Care & Adoption's partnership with Employment and Training and donations from CASA and Children's Fund. According to Canty, they’d like to expand the program in the future to maybe include 14- and 15-year-olds.
For more information about the E.Y.E. Program and E3, contact Charisma Canty or call 703-324-7668.
Each newsletter will include this section to help answer questions, spotlight the people who support foster families, highlight the donors and sponsors who generously give to foster care programs and activities and friendly reminders for foster families to sign-up for trainings.
Question: What is Fostering Futures?
Answer: In Virginia, the 2016 Appropriations Act (item 346 #3c) authorized the extension of foster care to up to age 21, in a program known as Fostering Futures, for youth who reach age 18 on or after July 1, 2016 and:
- Were in foster care at the time they turned 18 years old but have not yet turned 21,
- Were in Permanent Foster Care (PFC) when they turned 18. They will remain in PFC and concurrently qualify for Fostering Futures.
- Were released from Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) between ages 18 and 21 and who were in foster care in custody of a Virginia LDSS immediately prior to the commitment to DJJ.
Youth must meet at least one of these five criteria to continue to be eligible for the program:
- Completing secondary education or in a GED program
- Enrolled in college or a vocational program
- Attending classes to promote employment or remove barriers to employment
- Working at least 80 hours per month, or
- Unable to meet one of the four conditions above due to a documented medical reason.
Check out other frequently asked questions and answers from past issues.
Our partners and donors are the true power behind communities of care for Fairfax County Foster Care and Adoption. With them we can provide amazing support services, community events and after care resources.
This issue highlights Saint Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church.
Fairfax County Foster Care & Adoption families have benefited tremendously from the kindness of Saint Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church, which has partnered with us for more than 25 years. During this time, members of this congregation have helped develop the Holiday Spirit program with gifts for the more than 700 children in care; provided Easter baskets and Valentine’s Day cards; run clothing drives; and hosted holiday parties for the children and recruitment events. A special thanks goes out to Carol Mayfield and Chris Mikrut, who helped organize the Holiday Spirt program for more than 10 years.
Contact Information
www.stmaryofsorrows.org
703 978-4141
5222 Sideburn Rd., Fairfax, VA 22032
Check out highlights of other donors and sponsors from past issues.
The following trainings are for Fairfax County foster parents only.
Inservice (For certified Fairfax County foster parents. Registration required.)
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Submit your suggestions to Kendra Lee.
Check out past issues of Foster Family News.