Families For Children: Connecting Kids to Caring Homes
Foster care and adoption are often the only alternatives for children who have been removed from their biological parents for reasons such as abuse or neglect. Due to circumstances out of their control, the child suddenly finds themself a dependent of the juvenile court and thrust into the foster care system.
Thousands of children—from infants to teenagers—are currently in California’s foster care system and want nothing more than to live in a caring home and, hopefully, be adopted by a loving family.
Enter Families For Children. The full-service, not-for-profit foster care and adoption resource agency, with locations locally in Roseville and El Dorado Hills, assists in finding permanent, loving adoptive families for foster children.
The need for committed, caring foster families has greatly intensified in our communities, and the agency has kept up by continually expanding its services for over 30 years.
“Families For Children was founded in 1988 as a foster care agency,” says Ursula DeVere, who’s served as the organization’s CEO since 1991. “In 1992, the adoption program was added and we experienced significant growth over the next few years. [Currently], we have four offices in Northern California and our programs [serve] over 30 California counties.”
The agency performs a number of key services. It assists potential foster care parents with applying, training, and attaining the proper certification; then, moving forward, it identifies foster children who would be a good match for that family. Upon placement of a child, they work with the foster parents to provide a full range of support services, including regular home visits and crisis intervention.
If an adoption is desired, the agency’s full-service adoption license enables them to guide the parents through the entire process without fees or attorney assistance. “About 90 percent of our children are adoptive children,” DeVere explains. “We have many families who have returned two or more times to adopt children, which is a sign that we fulfill our mission and their dreams in a successful manner.”
No doubt it is challenging and sensitive work, but the compassionate, experienced staff members are seasoned executives and master’s-level social workers who strongly believe in the agency’s mission. Some have been on the team for as long as 25 years.
Families For Children holds numerous special events throughout the year, such as a family appreciation BBQ, a children’s party, and a large holiday celebration. When monetary contributions are received, all proceeds go directly to support the children.
“California has tens of thousands of children [who need] loving, adoptive homes,” says DeVere. “Please think about their hopes and dreams, and consider helping our programs.”