3 Ways to Raise Awareness About Foster Care

If you’re interested in becoming a foster parent, it’s likely you are passionate about meeting the need. You may know someone who is a foster parent or has been in foster care, or you may simply want to help children who need stable support. Whether or not you decide to become a foster parent right away, there are always ways to help. One way you can support foster families and children in foster care is to raise awareness.

Though there are more than 360,000 children in foster care across the U.S., many people are still unaware of just how great the need for foster families is. You can help support children in foster care by helping people understand what foster care is like and the widespread need for more loving foster families. Here are a just a few ways you can help raise awareness:

1. Learn and Share Online
   There are many resources you can follow online to learn more about foster care and what it’s like, even if you haven’t yet begun fostering yourself. When you follow trusted sources you can also repost the information you find, helping others learn as well. May is National Foster Care Awareness month, which is a great time to use your social media and other outlets to share information with your community. Some helpful accounts to follow could include: America’s Kids Belong, Foster the Family, and Adopt U.S. Kids. Omni Family of Services also posts all kinds of helpful information you can share to help raise awareness through our social accounts like Instagram, as well as our blogs.
2. Rally Others to Support a Current Foster Family
   When you begin to listen to and connect with people who are fostering, you’ll discover practical needs that you can help meet. Sometimes a family will create an Amazon wishlist for a birthday or a new placement, or they may need something specific like a home repair. Bringing meals is always a great way to alleviate stress for a foster family as well. You can help spread the word about a family’s needs (without sharing their unique story) via social media or to your friends and family. Perhaps even gather some friends to volunteer to help clean or do household tasks. By getting others involved, you’re helping introduce them to the world of foster care and the kinds of things foster families need.
   Simply being near a foster family can often “demystify” the experience, helping people understand that foster families are not superheroes. They are simply people who said “yes” to providing a safe and loving home to a child who needed it. This may even prompt someone in your community to become a foster family down the road!
3. Host an Event
   If you know any current foster families or can connect with them via a placement agency, hosting an event is a great way to raise awareness. You could provide a “parents night out” by entertaining their kids for a couple of hours or provide a meal for the families where they can also connect with one another. If you don’t know any foster families personally yet, you could host a school supply drive and donate the items to a placement agency, or even screen a movie about foster care like Sound of Hope or Instant Family for your community.

If you’re interested in learning more about foster care or how to become a foster parent, Omni Family of Services is here to help. Learn more here.