Families For Children is a non-profit 501c(3) adoption & foster family agency providing aid for children with no legal guardian. Their mission is to support needy foster home children and find loving families who can cherish them and create a friendly and caring environment. This agency finds a permanent or a temporary family that is capable of ministering the child's welfare. The volunteers and employees are well trained and devoted on working together to create the best service offered. This organization is not only offered here in Sacramento, but also in Roseville, Stockton, Fairfield, Oakland, Yuba City, and Santa Clara.

Services Offered

• Foster to Adoption Services
• Adoption Home Studies
• Quarterly Support Group and Training
• Concurrent Planning and Matching
• Post Adoptive Support
• International Home Studies
• Foster Care Services
• Initial Foster Parent Training
• Monthly Ongoing Training
• Foster Parent Support Groups
• Teen Foster Child Support Groups
• Extensive Training for Homes with Teens

See also other local services & organizations.

Am I Ready To Adopt?

Many people often question am I ready to adopt? Am I qualified to adopt? With this question in mind many ready guardians don't adopt because they doubt their skills. Families For Children doesn't ask that much out of guardians. All they ask is for you to become the loving guardian these kids would want to have. When adopting, guardians are asked to evaluate their parenthood in general. This means guardians should ask themselves are they good communicators, good listeners, emotionally mature and stable overall. In order to become an adoptive guardian one must deal with the consequences of becoming a parent. Families For Children assess guardians in many areas such as their humor, emotions, being team player, flexibility, and so forth. Each one of these qualities plays a huge role in making the adopted kid feel comfortable when they are around you. As a guardian, your role is to make the child feel loved and feel at home. Having a sense of humor can make a child bloom and boost their overall spirit. Laughter is the best medicine and it can cure any problem kids have or it can have a positive effect when they know they can make their guardian laugh. Another thing guardians should have is having the ability to move on no matter how hard the day may seem. Having a positive outlook on life creates a better life for you and your adopted child. Guardians should be willing to tolerate change and express emotions. Knowing when to keep your distance from kids and knowing when to step in helps a lot when dealing with adoptive kids because of their previous history. Lastly having the ability of flexibility, commitment and security will make the adopted children love you back in return. Foster children are in need of all these emotions and skills because they haven't experienced what it feels like to be in a loving family. Your readiness to adopt should be evaluated on all these terms mentioned and you should look upon the consequences and enjoyment of becoming a parent.

Qualifications For Legal Guardians

• Must be over the age of 21
• Must pass the criminal background check
• Must have a regular source to support themselves and the children
• Must have proper housing
• Must have car and car insurance plus a clean DMV report
• Must have flexibility in schedule for foster children court appearances and medical appointment
• Must pass state required Home Safety Check
• Must be aware of foster children schedule
• Can be single or married

Foster Care Process

All families in California must go through a state regulated process in which families will complete training, applications and a certified process to which they can become a foster parent. Families For Children focus is to help you one on one in providing answers to any questions you may have. They believe one on one orientations with experienced workers will ease any discomfort people may have because they know everyone doesn't get to say what they want when there are three or five other people with you. When guardians adopt children, they usually don't know how to cope with certain situations whether that be providing CPR or dealing with the children's stress level. That is why Families For Children provide an intensive 12 hour training for guardians looking to adopt. This training provides guardians the necessities to help their newly adopted child. Guardians will learn how to respond to children dilemmas whether that be family problems from beforehand or on going problems such as sexual harassment or dealing with the pain of separation. This training will provide guardians the best tools to handle adopted children and learn more about what it means to have a family. The next process that guardians go through is determining if you're a safe guardian who will be able to deal with the responsibilities of watching a child. Families For Children makes guardians go through a background check and fingerprint to clear any suspicion. The third thing Families For Children do is have a home study in which social workers will assess the quality of your house. They do this process in order to determine if your home is a livable home for the child. Lastly Families For Children will provide guardians with a home study in which they ask you to fill out questionnaires and describe your family. They want to know the stability, openness, and exploration your family is willing to provide for the newly adopted child. Families For Children is there to provide guardians the necessities to run a successful family and they are also there to select the best family qualified to adopt a needy child.

Money Questions?

Many parents ask does it cost to adopt? The answer is no. Families For Children is a private non profit agency in partner with the State of California in providing aid to foster children. This agency does provide reimbursement though. Families For Children provide guardians with a monthly reimbursement of $860 to cover over the child's medical expenses and help with housing and food. Donations are also appreciated in this agency as well. Donations are used solely on the children in which they are offered better education, skills and stability. Also when you donate here to Families For Children, your funds will be sent to families who have adopted foster children to better their lives as well. Families For Children's goal with money is to better the lives of children whether they are still in the system or out of the system with loving families.

Resources

http://www.families4children.com/resources.cfm

Comments

This report was written for Cynthia Linville's English 1A class at CSU Sacramento Fall 2011 —Karen Cabezas, BillyLo