9 Ways to Help Foster Kids (Without Becoming a Foster Parent)

Foster kids have all been through traumatic situations. No matter why they are in foster care, being uprooted from everything you know would be traumatic to any child. Foster kids need stable, caring adults to help them grow into stable, caring adults themselves. There are many ways to help foster kids that don't include actually becoming a foster parent.

Working With Foster Kids

You might not have the time or resources to bring foster kids into your home, but you can still work with them. Mentoring allows you to be a stable presence in the life of foster kids. Big Brothers Big Sisters of America (http://www.bbbs.org/) matches children with mentors. Some agencies will let you specifically request to be matched with a foster kid. Simply paying games or getting ice cream would be a special treat to foster kids. They need to know they are special and worth someone's time.

You can find a different mentoring program in your area by visiting MENTOR (http://www.mentoring.org/). Search by zip code to find mentoring programs in your area. You can click on the link to each program to find one that helps foster kids.

Orphan Foundation of America (http://orphan.org) allows you to mentor a foster kid, even from a distance. Their Academic Coach program matches volunteers with in-coming Freshmen or with foster kids who are at risk of dropping out of school. Academic Coaches don't have to be experts; they only need to have a real desire to make a difference in the life of foster kids. Coaches receive training to help them help their foster kids receive a quality education. You can also send a care package to a former foster kid who is in college.

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA, http://www.casaforchildren.org) are regular people who receive special training to be advocates for foster kids. Because foster kids are often moved from home to home, they need a stable adult in their lives who will be their voice. CASA volunteers handle only one or two cases until they are closed. This means they can often devote much more attention to their foster kids than overworked social services employees can. There are no specific education requirements to be a CASA volunteer. You only need to pass a background check and participate in CASA training.

If you can't commit to being a full-time foster parent, you might consider becoming a respite care foster parent. Respite families take in foster kids temporarily. This could be a few hours of babysitting, a weekend, or a week. Respite care gives foster parents a short break from caring for their foster kids. Foster parents often need to "recharge their batteries" and you can help by providing their foster kids a safe and loving environment.

Donations for Foster Kids

Foster kids don't have parents who will pay their way their college. Therefore, they must often rely on scholarships and grants. You can help foster kids succeed by donating through the National Foster Parents Association (http://www.nfpainc.org/) or the Orphan Foundation of America (http://orphan.org). By donating $2,500 or more, Orphan Foundation of America will allow you to, "name a scholarship after your family, company or a loved one".

Give foster kids back their dignity. Foster kids often move from home to home, carrying their few possessions in garbage bags. Suitcases For Kids (http://www.suitcasesforkids.org/) helps people gather donated suitcases for foster kids so they can at least place their things in a decent suitcase instead of having to haul a garbage bag behind them to their new foster home. Suitcases For Kids was founded by 10-year-old Aubyn Burnside, who saw this tangible and emotional need.

My Stuff Bags Foundation (http://mystuffbags.org) provides a full 12x20" duffle bags foster kids who have been removed from their home. Often, children are removed so quickly that they or their social workers have little time to gather their belongings. My Stuff Bags give foster kids something to cuddle and shows them that there are people out there who care about them. You can donate money or new items so foster kids will have something to call their own.

Foster kids did nothing to cause them to be removed from their home. They shouldn't be punished and deprived of all the things other children have. Do your part to help foster kids in whatever way you can, whether it's donating $25 or mentoring foster kids. There are an estimated 463,000 foster kids in the United States. They need our love and support.

Source

US Department of Health & Human Services, http://www.childwelfare.gov/