Caregiver Courier -

November 2022

National Adoption Awareness Month

Small Steps Open Doors

Dear Caregivers,

Thank you for everything that you do to help our children thrive and achieve great things in life. On behalf of Clark County management and DFS leadership we appreciate all the love and support you offer to our children in foster care every day.

Welcome to National Adoption Awareness Month – a time dedicated to increasing awareness of adoption issues and the need for adoptive families. This year’s national theme is “Small Steps Open Doors.”

In recent years, a strong focus has been placed on the importance of adopting teenagers because teens in foster care often wait longer for permanency than younger children and are at a higher risk of aging out. Our youth need understanding, support, and a sense of belonging. Securing lifelong connections for adolescents, both legally and emotionally, is a critical factor in determining their future achievement, health, and well-being.

Taking small steps to help our teens achieve permanency can make all the difference in the world. Thank you for stepping up for our children by taking the time listen to them. It’s important for us to urge our adolescents to be highly engaged in their own permanency planning because they are the experts of their own lives.

In 2021, the Clark County Department of Family Services celebrated the adoptions of 600 children and youth from foster care. By the end of this month, we expect to pay homage to additional loving families who will adopt more than 500 kids!

We can’t do this life-changing work without you. Please share our

DFS Adoption Profiles website with your family and friends. Let’s continue to support our children in every way possible!

Sincerely,

Tim Burch

Clark County Administrator of Human Services

ADOPTION CORNER

Meet Isaiah

Isaiah- Age: 12

 ·        Isaiah is in the 5^th grade. He loves playing every sport possible and loves winning trophies!

·        Isaiah enjoys hiking, drawing, and eating Burger King.

·        He loves watching movies, swimming, and going to the beach.

·        He is very bright and creative. Isaiah often exchanges drawings with his peers.

·        Isaiah would like to be professional basketball player when he grows up. 

Legal Status: Legal Free

Recruiter: Gabriela Garcia - [email protected]

Raise the Future Recognizes November as

National Adoption Month 

Raise the Future believes every young person deserves to go through life knowing they have a caring adult by their side, which is why we exist to connect youth waiting in foster care with the adults who become stable forces in their lives, and to support those relationships so that they last for a lifetime.

Using evidence-based recruitment and family support services, Raise the Future increases the chances of adoption for the longest-waiting youth in Nevada’s foster care system by up to three times and equips families and professionals with trauma-healing tools to help their children return to a healthy developmental trajectory.

Since 1983, Raise the Future has remained committed to working with State and local partners to fill gaps in the child welfare system so that all waiting youth and families have the support they need to achieve and maintain lifelong permanency. Since expanding recruitment and family support services in Nevada in 2019, the State of Nevada has recognized Raise the Future as a leader in the Child Welfare field and has increased support for our programs to ensure all of Nevada’s waiting youth and their families have access to services that improve their long-term health and wellbeing. 

During the month of November, Raise the Future, along with other nationally recognized organizations, partner in celebration of National Adoption Month. The National Adoption Month campaign seeks to increase national awareness of adoption issues, bring attention to the need for adoptive families for teens in the foster care system, and emphasize the value of youth engagement. National Adoption Month is a chance for all – individuals, families, businesses, organizations, communities, states, and government to support families who have grown through adoption as well as support the thousands of youth who are still waiting in foster care for a permanent home.

HOW TO OBSERVE NATIONAL ADOPTION MONTH

Attend events in your community

·        There are many events organized being held across the country during    National Adoption Month. Attend local events being organized in your town or city and educate yourself about adoption procedures, laws, and history.

Volunteer with an adoption organization

·        Help at your local foster care organizations during your free time. Even your tiniest efforts can make a huge difference in all these children’s lives. You can even mentor a child who is aging out of the foster care system.

Share information

·        Spread awareness about adoption with your friends and family. Encourage your neighborhoods, communities, cities, and states to take a stand on adoption. You can even spread the word via social media by sharing adoption-positive articles and links.

For more information on how to adopt from foster care & ways to help or get involved, please go to Raise the Future’s website at www.raisethefuture.org.

Title: The Importance of Proper Haircare and Cultural Considerations

Date of Training: Wednesday, November 2, 2022 at 5 pm-6pm PST

Register Here

Description:

Caring for children is not an easy task; there are so many variations and factors to consider. What happens when there’s a gap in education related to hair types and styles? This training will outline the importance of proper haircare and cultural considerations to help bridge the gap between parents and “Black hair”. This training will provide education about hair types, cultural considerations, mental health effects, and resources to help improve and empower parents/guardians to make necessary changes to support healthy haircare habits.

Title: Representation for Young Black Children

Date of Training: Wednesday November 9, 2022 at 5 pm-6pm PST

Description: There are so many ways for our children to be affected by what they watch. By increasing a parent’s understanding of representation through media sources, we can help guide our children towards shows that include positive images of them. This training will discuss the importance of representation through media sources, identify the mental health benefits of representation, and provide available resources to encourage, educate, and empower parents to incorporate media options that align with representation.



 Register Here

Title: Virtual TBRI Caregiver Full Series

Date of Training: Wednesday November 14th-18th, 2022 at 10:00 am - 2:30 pm PST

 Register Here

2022 HOLLY JOLLY HOLIDAY

GIFT REGISTRATION

·      Registration is open for the 2022 Holiday Gifts.

·    Please register your child(ren) for gifts that will be provided  December 2022.

·    Registration is only for children in protective custody/foster care or through Foster Kinship referrals.

·    Children who were adopted on or after July 1, 2022, can also be registered.



·      Wish list deadline is Friday November 18, 2022, General registration deadline is December 9, 2022. 

Click here to Register

Click here

to read rest of article. by Anne-Marie Abruscato, LCSW University of Nevada

CASA CORNER

The CASA program is honored to have the Champions for CASA as the new auxiliary for the Eighth Judicial District Court, CASA program. The mission of the Champions for CASA is to promote and support the work of the CASA Las Vegas Program through the recruitment, training, recognition, and retention of CASA Las Vegas volunteers. As six members of Champions for CASA are current or past CASA volunteers, we move forward knowing that volunteerism is in the foundation of this board. To learn more about the Champions for CASA, visit them online at championsforcasa.org

Picture from the official launch of the Champions for CASA on Thursday, October 6, 2022. 

Dr. Michelle Giddings-White, Debra Gallo (Secretary), Keith Wingate, Jenifer Page (President), Kelly Gaines, Michael Samuel, Shelia Parks (Ex Officio Board Member), Adam Campbell (Treasurer), absent Kimberly Coats  

Eighth Judicial District Court CASA program is honored to have nearly 400 CASA volunteers. Many more are needed to support the over 3,000 children in protective custody. To learn more, visit CASALasVegas.org or call 702.455.CASAQuick Q&A with the CASA program

Please contact the CASA office at [email protected] with specific questions about the CASA volunteer assignment process. 

INDEPENDENT LIVING CORNER

Click here for Community Driven Policies & Practices,

(compensation for attendance)

Click here for Food Handler Training 

  Important Educational Updates from DFS

November 2022

CLICK HERE

CCSD Education Update - Back to school Guide

CAREGIVER TRAINING CORNER

Click Here

Click Here

REGISTER HERE for Family ECHO: Autism

DFS CPR/FIRST AID TRAINING

CPR/AED & First Aid Certification

4 hour In-Person Training

Registration Link: Click here

Various Date(s)/Times Available: current – December 31, 2022

Click Here  (to see trainings)

ADOPTION CORNER

Canyon Ridge Supports Caregivers

Open to all foster caregivers (licensed, unlicensed, relative, fictive kin) Please make sure to register your register yourself and each child that will be participating.

Registration closes once all slots are filled. Must register no later than Monday, November 14, 2022. 

Click here to register

What Do You Get Out of it?

Foster Parent Night Out -

Friday November 18, 2022

Being a Foster Parent is a tremendous responsibility and help to our community. We understand that with the increased responsibility it is difficult to find regular respite care. In the third Friday of every month, from 6p - 9p. Canyon Ridge Christian Church would like to serve the foster parents of our community by providing free respite care. During that time, we will provide your children and your foster children a fun, safe and nurturing environment so that you can take some time to rest, catch a movie, go out with your spouse and more! Space is limited to a first come, first serve basis. Please drop off your children between 6:00p - 6:30p as the doors will closed after that time for safety purposes. Fill out the registration form to sign-up today!

Please note - feed your children before drop-off (we will provide snacks, but not dinner).

Open for children ages birth - 5th grade.

There will be no Foster Parents Night Out in November and December.

Being a Foster Parent is Tremendous responsibility and help to our community. We understand that with the increased responsibility it is difficult to find regular respite care.

On the first Friday of every month, Grace Point church serves the foster parents in our community by providing free respite care from 6p to 9p.

RESPITE Opportunities for

Therapeutic Children

To better serve caregiver families providing foster care or placement for children through DFS, we have established an additional respite option with The Therapeutic Solution. This respite option provides therapeutic-focused respite services to our children and youth requiring a higher level of care during respite needs. And also, respite services for the standard level of care requests referred by DFS; a higher level of need for behavioral care is not necessary to utilize respite services through The Therapeutic Solution. Respite is available for both planned and emergency respite requests. Services are open from 10 am-10 pm Monday through Friday. Weekend respite is available upon request and is provided as needed. 

To access this service please contact the DFS Case Manager with the requested respite timeframes. The DFS Case Manager will coordinate and ensure respite availability and provide you with confirmation and guidance.

RESPITE REIMBURSEMENT -

We support you

Support Groups

FOSTERING HOPE SUPPORT GROUP 

Fostering Hope support group meets every Wednesday from 6:00-8:00pm at Hope Church 850 E Cactus Ave. Childcare is provided just please email to RSVP for child care [email protected]

HANNAH'S CLOSET SOUTH

Hannah’s Closet South is open to shop go www.fosteringhopelv.com  to Sign up for a shopping slot

After having gifted guitars and offered music lessons to foster children over the last year,  The Tone Guild was encouraged and set up a formal organization. 501(c)(3)  This service organization mission is dedicated to spreading music to foster children and at-risk youth. 

To make it easier to identify and distribute musical instruments/lessons,  A  form was developed to nominate potential recipients. 

Submit nominations using this form: 

Tone Guild Student Nomination 

Comedy Magician Farrell Dillon Celebrates 100^th Las Vegas Performance

with Ticket Giveaway to 100 Foster Families



Farrell Dillon reached a performance milestone as the comedy magician celebrated his 100^th show on April 3^rd at The Magic Attic inside Bally’s Las Vegas Hotel and Casino. To commemorate this landmark occasion, Dillon is giving away show tickets to 100 Nevada foster families.

Dillon’s decision to distribute complimentary tickets to foster families came after the entertainer and his wife, Amanda, worked at a transitional home for young adults during the height of the COVID pandemic. 

“While we waited for the Vegas entertainment industry to recover from pandemic-related shutdowns, my wife and I decided to devote our time to a transitional home for young adults. We didn’t know much about this type of work, but we both decided to give it a shot and we are so thankful we did. As my wife and I developed genuinely loving relationships with these young people, and became an enriching part of their daily lives, the experience at the home instilled in us a renewed sense of gratitude and appreciation for our own family,” Dillon said. 

National Foster Care Month  in May, Dillon decided to celebrate the 100^th show of his Bally’s residency by treating 100 foster families to a complimentary performance.

To get your tickets call 702-455-5424