There's a severe shortage of Foster Homes in Beaufort County. Here's how you can help.
With a shortage of loving, supportive foster homes in our area, and throughout the state, the Child Abuse Prevention Association (CAPA) is seeking to bridge that service gap.
On Thursday, June 6, 2019, St. Peter’s Catholic Church will be hosting a Foster Care Recruitment Dinner in partnership with CAPA for potential foster parents as well as anyone who is interested in supporting children who have been taken into protective custody.
Foster children are infants to 18 year olds who have been taken into protective custody due to abuse or neglect. This dinner will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the Walsh Palmetto Room at St. Peter’s Catholic Church.
CAPA is now a licensed Child Placing Agency to recruit, train and support resource (foster) families thanks to funding from United Way of the Lowcountry and a recently awarded Victims of Crime Grant (VOCA).
Through this private public partnership between DSS and CAPA, the agency will recruit families in Beaufort County. DSS currently needs over 1,000 more licensed homes. Today we can serve 15 children each night in our Open Arms Children’s Home. However, with the recruitment of just five resource families we can more than double that number. CAPA intends to expand services to the entire Fourteenth Judicial Circuit in the coming years.
What is a resource family?
Also known as a foster family, a resource family is a caring adult(s) with the ability, resources, and willingness to provide a safe and nurturing environment for a child to join their family until reunification is possible. There are five competency categories:
- Protecting and nurturing children (safety)
- Meeting children’s developmental needs and addressing developmental delays (well-being)
- Supporting relationships between children and their families (permanency)
- Connecting children to safe, nurturing relationships intended to last a lifetime (permanency)
- Working as a member of a professional team
Interested in learning more about Fostering?
To learn more about CAPA’s Resource Family Program visit http://capabeaufort.org/foster/
