[Archived] Alexandria to Host Foster Care Information Forum

City Press Release


	City of Alexandria, Virginia Office of the City Manager Alexandria City Hall 301 King Street, Suite 3500 Alexandria, Virginia 22314-3211 www.alexandriava.gov Telephone: 703.838.4300 Fax : 703.838.6343

Alexandria to Host Foster Care Information Forum

The First Lady of Virginia, Ms. Lisa Collis, will be the featured speaker at the Alexandria Child Welfare Partnership's “Finding Families Now and Forever: a Foster Care Community Information Forum” to encourage foster parenting in Alexandria. The Forum is scheduled for Saturday, May 4, from 9 am until noon, in the cafeteria of the Minnie Howard School, 3801 West Braddock Road, Alexandria. Individuals interested in learning about becoming a foster parent or in assisting with the Department of Human Services’ foster care program are invited to attend.

The Forum is designed to provide specific and realistic information to those in the community who want to know more about becoming a foster parent, how to adopt a child or how to volunteer to help children in foster care. Participants will learn from the experiences of real foster parents and children and social workers will be available for consultation.

A life-long advocate for children and youth, Ms. Collis will address the extraordinary impact ordinary citizens can have on the lives of vulnerable children. Mayor Kerry J. Donley and Judge Nolan Dawkins of the Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court will also participate in the Forum.

The Forum is being held as part of National Foster Care Month, when cities across the country will launch events to encourage foster parenting.

“Foster parents are heroes,” said Linda Hester, a member of the Alexandria Child Welfare Partnership, “everyday people who make a profound difference in the lives of children in their care.”

In Alexandria, as in many other urban areas, there are not enough near-by foster homes to meet the needs of children in need of foster homes. When children who have experienced abuse or neglect are removed from the home of their parent the foster care system attempts to keep them as close to home as possible, where they can maintain important family, school and neighborhood relationships. Fortunately, many citizens in Alexandria and contiguous jurisdictions are interested in helping children who are abused or neglected and want to know if they will meet the qualifications or if there are other ways they can help.

The Alexandria Child Welfare Partnership was established in August 2001 to educate the community about preventing and reporting child abuse and neglect and to recruit foster and adoptive parents. Members of the partnership include organizations and community representatives who are dedicated to keeping Alexandria’s children safe. Representatives from Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN), Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), and Healthy Families of America have joined foster parents, child advocates and the Alexandria Department of Human Services in launching a community education program called OK: Our Kids-Our Business. The Foster Care Community Forum is one of the first community-wide events sponsored by the OK Campaign.

To RSVP or to obtain more information or directions, call the Alexandria Human Services Department at 703.838.0768.

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