Showing posts with label foster mom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label foster mom. Show all posts

Friday, October 24, 2014

Foster Children Crowdfunding with a Twist, Supported by Businesses




So many people have asked how they could get involved to help foster children. We have the answer. On Nov. 10, a crowdfunding campaign will be launched to raise funds so that hundreds of foster kids will be able to move out of the foster care system and into forever homes with loving relatives. And this campaign has a business twist.


First let's talk crowdfunding. You have heard of this but may not be clear on what crowdfunding is and how it works. Crowdfunding is essentially people giving money to a cause. It's not a donation is the traditional sense because depending on the amount you contribute, you get a prize that is called a perk. These perks can be very nice ranging from original drawings, artwork or music, or products such as clothes, books or even tickets to a movie that was produced by the money raised through crowdfunding.

Our crowdfunding campaign will be unique because it's oriented toward professionals and businesses. We have pulled together some of the top marketers, trainers and coaches in the country who are contributing products and services. Eric Lofholm, who is recognized as one of the world’s leading experts on sales, sales systems, and sales scripting, is offering a digital program for just $25. Other experts such as Jill Lublin, master publicity strategist, consultant, and bestselling author, are offering one-on-one coaching sessions.





Ever heard of Tom Antion? Tom was dominating Internet marketing before most people knew there was an Internet. He's offering a special coaching session that cannot be bought except through our crowdfunding. Tom is a strong supporter of our organization's work to reconnect foster kids with their family members. Following Tom is Roberto Candelaria, crowdfunding expert, who is also donating his time and expertise to help ensure a successful campaign.


Of course, I would be remiss not to mention Gia Heller, social media marketing guru and the leading expert in her field. Gia is a contributor and is providing pre-launch support and guidance. But that's not all. Gia recently adopted a foster teen and is working on getting certified so she can become a foster mom to more children. She understands the challenges that foster youth face both while in the foster care system and once they age out.

Our contributors are smart, sharp and very successful business professionals who want to give back and are doing so by supporting our work to get 200-250 foster kids out of foster care in 2015 and into forever homes. If you aren't in a position to become a foster parent, you can absolutely join in our crowdfunding. Find a perk, get new skills to grow your business or improve an area of your personal life. With a dozen experts, there's something at a contribution level for everyone.





We're in the home stretch for 2014. The holidays are here. Now is the perfect time for you to give and help a foster child. It's never been easier and you'll go away with a perk that could help you make 2015 your best year ever.


Fulfill your desire to help foster kids avoid homelessness, not end up in prison, remain in school, and not become another sex trafficking victim. Do it for the children. Do it for yourself. I can't think of anything that speaks to the holiday spirit like helping a child in need.

Regards,

Richard Villasana
  Richard

Richard Villasana
Find Families In Mexico
760-690-3995

PS. Starting Oct. 27, you'll be able to follow our progress on the crowdfunding campaign by visiting our page at www.FindFamiliesInMexico.org/news.


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Friday, October 10, 2014

Foster Kid Statistics - Youths Flooding Arizona's Foster Care System


(video link is below)


I know that a lot of our readers live in Arizona so you'll probably be interested in the latest foster care statistics. In an interview this week, Kris Jacober, executive director of the Arizona Friends of Foster Children Foundation, shares that Arizona is losing the fight to lower the number of foster kids coming into the foster care system.


Foster kid statistics reveal that the state has roughly 20,000 children in foster care. As the article describes, "That's more than the total population of Sedona and Winslow combined." That's a lot of displaced children.

To put this alarming number into perspective, it is almost double the number of Arizona foster youth in 2010. Texas is the only other state where the number of foster children has increased from years ago. 






There has been a lot of upheaval in Arizona since the beginning of 2014 because of publicized failures by the Department of Child Safety. Many include Governor Jan Brewer felt that the state's foster care system was broken. The article implies that this influx of kids into foster care is due to the Department of Child Safety having closed 6,500 outstanding child welfare cases within the last month or so.


Jacober's organization supplies items that the state doesn't provide to its foster kids. In 2009, Arizona made significant, "brutal" cuts in the foster care budget causing a strain on many non-profits that have tried to pick up the slack.

One of the crippling side effects from Arizona's reduced foster care budget is the lack of funds to support efforts to locate foster kids' family members. This deficit means that many foster youth who could be moving out of foster care don't because a relative was located and wanted to take in the child are simply not contacted. Instead these children are spending many more months and years in the state system.





The irony is that by investing in more thorough efforts to locate relatives, more foster kids would be processed out and placed with family members. The monthly support payments to these relatives is very modest as the support amount was also a casualty of the 2009 budget cuts. Bottom line: Arizona would save millions of dollars by doing more to locate relatives.


Foster care agencies and the politicians that sign off on their budgets need to take a step back and look at the big picture. Officials need to start identifying those procedures that will save these agencies money while still providing the necessary support to foster children and those caring adults, such as Gia Heller, social media marketing guru and soon-to-be foster mom, who step up and give these children a forever home. This is the only way real progress will be made so less children go into foster care in the first place.

Regards,

Richard Villasana
  Richard

Richard Villasana
Find Families In Mexico
760-690-3995

PS. Share your thoughts and ideas below and share this post with others.


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