Renaming Foster Care

Years ago there was a Saturday Night Live (SNL) skit with Mike Myers impersonating a female talk show host that always ended with a statement to be discussed among the guests. They always took a phrase and questioned how it is commonly understood. As we celebrate Foster Care Awareness month, I’m wondering in the spirit of this SNL skit if we would ask, “Foster Care….is neither foster nor care……talk amongst yourselves.”

The number of children in foster care is staggering: nationwide more than 500,000 children,  in California 100,000 children and in Los Angeles County, more than 33,000 children receive child welfare services.  Though the numbers have been reduced over the last several years, they are still daunting. For each of these children, the disruption of their lives is traumatic, the impact significant and the potential for long-term failure frightening.

So what of the foster care, child welfare system? While many of us know it as a worthwhile endeavor making a positive difference in the lives of children, nationally both “foster care” and “child welfare” continue to evoke negative impressions. Many actually do ask, what kind of “care” is it? The other day I received a call from the parent of one of our residents very concerned that her daughter was identified as a foster child in materials she received recently!

Maybe it is time to rename foster care? Of course, renaming it without changing the system would only be a gimmick.  The only solution is an unwavering resolve to provide a system of care that never loses sight of the needs of each child and family; a system that, although always focused on safety, is committed to providing families with the resources they need to care for their children; a system that is not punitive, but rather oriented around what is effective and committed to strengthening families.

The fact is that the child welfare system is changing to become more child driven and family friendly, and these efforts have contributed to the decline in the number of children entering the foster care system. The need of each child and family in care, however, has not diminished and the challenge to provide them the resources and services continues to be great.

In an effort to “rename” foster care here at Hillsides, we have developed an ingenious way to rally community support while drawing attention to the needs of the children and families we serve. Check out Foster Soles and join in supporting our efforts.

Thanks.

Justice Has Been Done

The surprise announcement on Sunday that Osama Bin Laden had been killed has rekindled for all of us memories of that fateful day when we were confronted with the reality of global terrorism on our shores. We all remember where we were and how it affected us. I recall on that day receiving a frantic call from a friend in Massachusetts to ascertain that I had gotten back safely to Los Angeles after a week visiting with family and friends there. He was unsure of my travel plans and was afraid that I had been on the flight from Boston that crashed. As fate had it, I was on that same flight, but traveled September 10! Had I left on September11, I would have perished along with others like Lynn and David Angell.

Many of you know, Lynn Angell, who as a volunteer, single handedly started our campus library.  Her photograph is prominently displayed in the library as a reminder of her extraordinary dedication to our students. Motivated by a conviction that she could make a difference, she committed to provide our students with a place and resources to learn, to improve their lives and to become successful.  Her spirit lives on here and we continue to benefit from her support through generous grants from the Angell Foundation.

In spite of the tremendous sense of loss we experienced as we mourned the deaths of so many innocent victims, our lives have not been centered on retribution, but rather on their living legacies.  On Monday, the 13-year-old son of one of the heroes, a fireman who perished at the World Trade Center, said that he did not feel vengeful. To him, it matters little that Bin Laden had been killed, it was the loss of his father that 10 years later he still mourned. As much as justice has been done, the losses are still profound, the threats are still ever present and the impact of that day is still being felt.

The lesson of course is that the best “revenge” is to live full and fearless lives especially in the face of threats. As we begin May, Foster Care Awareness Month, it is appropriate for us to recall that the greatest instruments we have in the face of daunting obstacles are courage, hope and resolve.

Lynn Angell continues to counter the senseless acts of terror of September 11 each time a student is welcomed into the library that honors her commitment.  Join us to help our students and residents confront the challenges they experience and learn to be strong and fearless, hopeful and confident. Just as this is Lynn Angell’s impact on children served by the foster care system, it can also be yours.

Annual Fund Campaign: Can You Imagine?

“Can You Imagine?”  is the theme for the inaugural annual fund that we launched this past week and will continue for the next couple of months. Can you imagine a better life for the children, youth and families we serve? Can imagine how your support will help them stay safe, overcome trauma, improve in school, find a job and gain confidence and hope?

We can not imagine accomplishing all we do if it were not for the support that we receive from you! It is because of your generous support that we achieve what others have failed to do. I am fond of saying that there is not enough that we can do to support those we serve. Their needs are so great, their hurts so grave, their despair so profound. It takes all our talent, commitment and resources to stabilize them and begin to see improvement. The public funding we receive, in some instances, is woefully inadequate and, even when sufficient, still only provides for a minimal level of care--certainly not sufficient to fully address the needs of the children we serve.

Each year we need to raise in excess of $2 million to appropriately care for those we serve.   As grateful as we are for the public funds we receive, it is still not enough to do what is needed. Without your support and sacrifice we would not be able to sustain the level of care that our children and families truly require.

This campaign is a direct and simple way for you to help us fulfill the historic mission of Hillsides to provide a safe and nurturing environment for those we serve, whether at our campus in Pasadena or the schools we serve in Los Angeles or the outreach we offer in neighborhoods throughout the San Gabriel valley.

Please consider contributing to this campaign and sharing this appeal with family, friends and neighbors who along with you want to make a difference in the lives of the children and youth we serve.

Know that what you do makes a big difference. To learn more about the campaign, its impact and ways you can help.

As always thank you for your generous support.