Fairfax County Youth Advocate La Tika Jeffery was recognized as a 2020 Adoption Excellence Award Honoree at the Children's Bureau's online celebration of National Adoption Month on Nov. 17! La Tika has continued to directly impact youth in foster care through mentorship. She also supports the child welfare system through her advocacy, public speaking, and participation on various national and international committees and panels.
La Tika was in foster care as a teenager, and was adopted at age 21. She is a member of the AdoptUSKids speakers bureau, and she uses this platform to share her experiences as a youth in foster care to advocate for the interests of current youth in care, and to encourage adoption as a permanency solution for youth. She has been involved in a variety of media interviews, conferences, panels, webinars, and Facebook Live events.
La Tika shares her story with great courage and vulnerability in a way that impacts each of her audiences. Assistant Secretary, Lynn Johnson, of the Administration for Children and Families, said “Having worked with La Tika a little bit myself, I don’t think she says ‘no’ to anybody when you ask her to help you with something. She’s always saying ‘yes,’ and I thank her for that.”
As a Fairfax County Youth Advocate, La Tika works to improve the foster care experience for current and future generations of youth in foster care through cultivating and increasing their opportunities to achieve permanency. The core purpose of the Youth Advocate Program is to increase young people in foster care’s opportunities to achieve permanency through:
- Including the voice and perspective of former foster youth.
- Advocacy and support during family partnership meetings.
- Cultivating a mentor relationship.
We are delighted that La Tika has been recognized and grateful for her continued partnership to our youth and continuum of service. Check out the portion of the awards ceremony featuring La Tika.
This article posting is part of the Foster Family News monthly newsletter designed to keep foster parents informed about all the new and notable happenings in Fairfax County.
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