Foster Care Awareness Month
 
May is National Foster Care Awareness Month,  a month set aside to raise awareness on the year-round needs of children and youth in foster care. According to 2016-2017 data from the  South Carolina Department of Social Services, Greenville County served the third largest number of children in foster care South Carolina at 616 children. 

Children in foster care represent a particularly vulnerable sub-population of children.  

Studies show that complex physical health, mental health, and developmental issues often go unidentified and untreated among children in foster care. One report found that 12% of these children had not received routine health care, 34% hadn't received any immunizations, and only 10% received services to address developmental delays.

These children often come from a family with a history of abuse and neglect. If the root causes go unidentified, the cycle of trauma continues to repeat throughout generations. 

This is where the Pendleton Place Assessment Center steps in. 

The Assessment Center  provides comprehensive evaluations and assessments for children and their families entering foster care in Greenville County. Pendleton Place ensures critical needs are met by providing medical and mental health evaluations as well as developmental screenings within 5-7 days of entry into foster care.

The Assessment Center also offers services to the family of removal and current caregiver. The family receives a comprehensive evaluation with each member benefiting from screening tools and interviews. The family of removal is given the opportunity to engage in the child's assessments in order to increase parent-child contact and even build relationships between biological and foster parents. 

The results of these evaluations are utilized by a number of partner agencies to develop a comprehensive plan for each child and adult that will put them on the best possible track for a bright future. This program is the only one of its kind in South Carolina!

The Assessment Center focuses on identifying root causes of neglect or abuse of children in foster care, hoping to one day end this cycle. When you support Pendleton Place, you help to protect, equip, and heal foster children and families impacted by abuse and neglect. During National Foster Care Month, show your commitment to ensuring safety, strength, and wholeness for all children and youth in foster care.  
Donate to Support Children in Foster Care
Executive Director Transition

 As a valued supporter, we want to make sure we keep you abreast of important changes and updates within our organization. This month we will be experiencing an executive transition in accordance with our agency's established succession plan. Due to an unanticipated need to be closer to family, our current Executive Director, Kathryn Johnson, will be leaving Pendleton Place and moving back to North Carolina in May. While we are very sad to be losing Kathryn, we are delighted to announce a very familiar face as our new Executive Director. Our current Associate Executive Director, Jed Dews, will transition into the Executive Director role upon Kathryn's departure on May 16, 2018.  
 
Jed has a long history with Pendleton Place, was honored as one of Greenville's Best and Brightest in 2017 and has extensive experience and knowledge in child welfare. Jed has collaborated with the Alliance for Strong Families and Communities on the development of a federal policy platform, provided technical assistance to a public-private child protection research project sponsored by UNICEF, and contracted with the Children's Bureau to examine key indicators of state-wide performance in child welfare services.
 
Kathryn, Jed, and our Board of Directors have been working together to execute a well-planned transition with no disruptive impact on the organization, its services, and, most importantly, the children and families we serve. We are very grateful for the time we have with Kathryn and look forward to the future under the new leadership of Jed. 
Testing a New Menu

Our Smith House residential program recently received new residents who had never experienced the fun of a South Carolina crab leg boil. Thanks to the support of our donors, we were able to enhance our house menu one night and surprise everyone with crab, shrimp, and all the fixings! A special shout out goes to Kimberly Mack, the Smith House Case Manager, who used her skills as a native of Charleston to prepare the feast! Thank you to all who support our efforts to create special experiences for the teenagers entrusted to our care.
Day at the Drive
 
Please join Pendleton Place at the  SYNNEX  Share the Magic Day at the Drive on Sunday, June 10, 2018! We will celebrate our joint efforts to support children and youth in the Upstate facing incredible challenges. The first pitch starts at 4:00 p.m. A portion of all tickets sold will support Pendleton Place. You can purchase your ticket online by using  this link . This is a great opportunity to plan a fun family outing, church committee gathering, and co-worker gathering. Please pass on the link! See you at the Fluor Field!
Volunteer Spotlight

The Volunteer Spotlight honors those who go above and beyond in serving the mission of Pendleton Place. This month we would like to recognize the volunteer efforts of a group from New Spring Church. Members of the church came together to work around the facility on various projects. The group worked together to clean and organize the donation rooms, paint a closet, and power wash the buildings. We are grateful for groups like New Spring Church who take the time to beautify the campus for the children and families Pendleton Place serves. 
AFL Grant

In April, Pendleton Place received a $5,000 grant donation from AFL. We are so grateful to have wonderful partners like AFL who believe in the Pendleton Place mission. Through this donation, they are helping to provide food, program supplies, and clothing for the teen girls in our Smith House Program. Thank you for keeping children safe and supporting families in crisis!
Our Mission is to keep children safe and support families in crisis through prevention, assessment, and intervention.

Our Vision is a community where children are safe, families are strong, and victims become whole again.

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 864.467.3650
www.pendletonplace.org