Foster parents are needed across the country and across the world today. Children are left in difficult situations, without families, supportive parents, and communities that ensure their safety and happiness moving forward. Thankfully, people exist in the world that are ready to open their homes to the foster children in need of love and encouragement during their upbringing.

You’ve made the decision to become a foster parent, and that is absolutely fantastic. Thousands of children in Kansas right now are in need of a foster home, and with only 2,000 being licensed and available at this time, there isn’t enough space for these deserving and beautiful kids.

If you’ve made the choice to be one of those foster parents, you probably have a lot of questions, concerns, and fears going into the process. You’re opening your home to children that are not biologically yours, and that can be an unknown feeling for you. However, we’re here to help prepare you and support you during every step of fostering and/or adoption.

When children are unable to grow up in a loving home, with their biological parents, in a safe and guarded community, unfortunate scenarios, situations, and misconceptions start to surface. Foster parenting is still wholly misunderstood by individuals today, leading to false information and myths about the process that can deter and misinform potentially interested parents.

Throughout the United States, thousands of children, every single year, end up in the American foster care system. Although you may be aware of the dire need for parents, adults, and caretakers to step up and provide a safe and supportive environment for these displaced children, most people don’t like to think about the reasons why we need a foster care system in the first place.

It’s an unfortunate reality when a child ends up without parents, but thanks to our community, we are able to offer them something better for the future.

When a child receives news that they are being welcomed into a safe and loving home with open arms, they are immediately filed with hope that their future will get better. Children in the foster care system have been tossed around, forgotten, and neglected by families, adults, communities, and the system. All they want is to be wanted.

Child Abuse Prevention Month

National Child Abuse Prevention Month began as a reaction to increased public awareness of child abuse throughout the 1970’s. As a result, Ronald Reagan declared April National Child Abuse Prevention month in 1983. The goal was to increase understanding of what contributes to the prevalence of child abuse and, more importantly, how to prevent it.

Spring Break

Spring Break is quickly approaching; with that comes the stress of keeping many children occupied and happy! Most of us are operating on a budget which requires a Spring Break “Staycation”. Here is a list of ideas that could help generate ideas for your family to have a successful Spring Break this year!

Right now, there are many thousands of children placed into out of home care. Yet, there are vastly fewer potential homes registered, creating a massive gap that contributes to children being placed outside of their home communities in shelters. When this happens to them, they lose their friends, family, schools, teachers, and connection to their community – which is critical for children living in a fostering situation.

The Family Initiative, Inc. (TFI) is pleased to announce Tina Schueller as Senior Vice President of Finance. Schueller brings extensive expertise and a solid foundation in finance and accounting. In...

Thousands of children are bouncing around the American foster care system today, waiting to be adopted into a family they can call their own. With figures reporting that more than 428,000 children are available for adoption at any given time the United States, the number appears to be increasing since the turn of the century.