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New twist to annual Foster Appreciation Month elevates connection and fun factor for families and youth experiencing foster care
In past years, Every Child Central Oregon (ECCO) has taken the opportunity to shower the families and youth it serves with unique appreciation events throughout the Tri-County region of Crook, Jefferson and Deschutes counties, plus the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. But this year, ECCO put a fresh twist on the annual recognition, hosting its first-ever combined Foster Appreciation Event at Grace Bible Church in Bend.
In spite of some iffy weather, approximately 170 people from throughout Central Oregon turned out on Sunday, May 5 for a carnival-style event, featuring games, music, food trucks, bouncy houses, a book giveaway, crafts, ax throwing, balloon animals, face painting, food trucks, shaved ice and more! Thanks to all the donors, sponsors, local businesses and an impressive 58 volunteers, families and youth had an opportunity to enjoy all the fun provided that day and also share in this collective, community-focused appreciation, which made for a truly festive experience.
As one attending family stated, “This work is SO Hard, and it can be very isolating at times, but knowing we have a community who cares and has our family’s back makes us feel like we are not alone in this difficult but very important work!”
Our Mission: Mobilizing community around families and youth impacted by foster care.
THANK YOU TO ALL OUR FOSTER APPRECIATION EVENT PARTNERS
Sponsors: Bennington Properties • Grace Bible Church of Bend
Participating Businesses: Grace Bible Church of Bend • A Gift of Smiles • BigFoot Beverage • Ian Caric • Joyful Lane Music • Bouncing off the Walls • Acme Hotdog Co. • Kona Ice • Ziggy’s Party Rentals • Pacific Perks Coffee • Unofficial Logging Inc. • Pretend Inc. • Fireflies • Seren Bruce and therapy dog, Joey • Smiles Ink
Donors: Ford Family Foundation • Unofficial Logging Co. • Guild Mortgage – Team Cherie • Bigfoot Beverage • Joyful Lane Music • Bend Church/Antioch FPNO • Pacific Perks Coffee
This volunteer work allowed me to love and spend time with kids who need safety and affection. That alone makes it all worthwhile.
— FosterAppreciation Event Volunteer
ROYAL TREATMENT
Talk about “take me out to the ball game”! 💛 Thanks to an anonymous donor and the generosity of The Bend Elks, 75 families experiencing foster care received free tickets to a local baseball game in mid-July, plus food and beverage vouches to make it the experience at true home run!
“One of our donors asked if some families might want to attend a game,” says Melissa Williams, Every Child Central Oregon’s executive director. “We initially had 40 tickets, which were gone in 24 hours, so we bumped up the number to 75 and not a single ticket went unclaimed. It was such an exciting evening of good-old-fashioned fun, and the Bend Elks really rolled out the red carpet for all these families and the kids!”
Oh, and while we’re on the topic of the Bend Elks, congrats to the team and good luck in your West Coast League Playoffs!
BUILDING AWARENESS, GROWING AUDIENCE
If there’s one thing you can say about youth in foster care today, it’s that not a single one of them chose to go into foster care. And yet Melissa Williams, Every Child Central Oregon’s (ECCO) executive director says that the need today is greater than ever. What’s behind the increase in demand?
According to Williams, ever since the pandemic, everyone—no matter their socio-economic class— has been waiting for a bit of a reprieve from a mix of pressures and impacts.
“Some of our foster families have been offering care for years, yet they need a break, and understandably and deservedly so,” Williams says. “They have held in longer than most families because they recognized the serious need, particularly during and right after COVID. But because people in general are very tapped out or think, ‘It’s not my problem,’ we’re not seeing new people sign up to foster. This is very concerning because these youth are still very much members of our community— they are right here among us, going to school with our children, and a part of our lives whether we take ownership of this or not. We need more homes for youth, period.”
Sharpening strategies to address the gap, ECCO has ramped up volunteer and marketing efforts, specifically
those capturing bigger audiences through service and media efforts, where there’s a guarantee for foster care
education. Some recent strategic highlights include:
Large Group Volunteer Events, partnering with large organizations and businesses. Two recent events included community partners Journey Church in Redmond and Keller Williams of Central Oregon. Each group gathered to put together clothing bundles. “Having such organizations volunteer helps them understand the scale of need that’s out there,” Williams says. “So we try to do big efforts like this, educate a large group, and get them directly involved in the solution. Our hope is they’ll help spread the word about ECCO and the demand
for more foster families in our community. And, perhaps some of the folks from those groups will remain involved and may even consider fostering themselves.”
21 Cares for Kids, a partnership program offered by KTVZ News Channel 21, selected ECCO as a partner for the year. The program features a regular PSA about ECCO and focuses resources toward bolstering the health and well-being of Central Oregon’s youth. As the news station states: “The NewsChannel 21 Cares for Kids campaign serves as a vital platform for advocating and facilitating positive change in the lives of Central Oregon’s children. The 21 Cares for Kids program is further strengthened by its partnership with OnPoint Community Credit Union. This collaboration enhances the program’s reach and impact by leveraging the resources and expertise of OnPoint, a trusted financial institution deeply invested in the communities it serves. Together, we strive to create a brighter future for Central Oregon’s youth, while supporting our community where every child has the opportunity to thrive and succeed.”
KTVZ News Channel 21’s “Community Conversations,” interviewing Shiann Schmidt, ECCO’s foster retention coordinator. In this sit-down interview, Schmidt discussed Central Oregon’s growing foster needs and how to involved, whether volunteering, wrapping around a family through ECCO’s The Neighborhood Program, attending a fundraiser, or starting the journey to foster youth. As Schmidt stated on the show, “Probably everyone has heard of foster care, but unless you’ve been intimately involved, you’ve probably not taken a good look at it.” Watch the interview here.
300
Number of children in foster care, Deschutes, Crook & Jefferson Counties
173
Number of families offering foster care services to youth
-38%
Drop in Ready Now Foster Inquiries in Central Oregon, Year to Date
EXPLORING THE JOURNEY OF FOSTER CARE
FIVE MYTHS THAT PREVENT FOSTER CARE SUPPORT
MYTH #1. Foster care needs are being met in Central Oregon. More homes than ever are needed to address a sizeable uptick in demand that’s surfaced in Central Oregon over the past six months. There’s also a pervasive perception that most youth in need are teens or kids with challenging behaviors, which is simply not true. Emails and calls come in daily to Every Child Central Oregon (ECCO), requesting immediate placement for youth of all ages and who, despite the stress and trauma they may be experiencing, behave in well-adjusted ways.
MYTH #2. Foster care certification is a lengthy, year-long process. It requires background and fingerprint checks, 24 hours of online training, (with in- person training available as an option), plus home visits designed to help access the best foster fit, discuss fostering preferences and rovide recommendations to support the success of the foster experience.
MYTH #3. There’s no way to test the “foster-care waters” before committing to caring for a child. Every Child Central Oregon can connect you to a foster-respite program that enables people to care for a child that’s already in placement, whether for a couple of hours, an afternoon or an entire day.
MYTH #4. You must be married to provide foster services. When it comes to foster care certification, there are no requirements around marriage status. You can also work versus be stay-at-home parents and do not need to own a home versus rent.
MYTH #5. You must provide financially for the child you foster. Families who foster receive a stipend to support financial needs. Also, ECCO strives to provide a wide scope of support with tangible and intangible needs.