Our nation’s foster care workers serve on the front lines of a complex and challenging system created to protect children and support families in crisis.
For many, when we consider the vital work that needs to be done to help vulnerable children and their families, we often think first of foster parents, children in foster care, or biological parents, which is good and right. These are groups that can get overlooked in the conversation. However, many agency workers feel isolated and alone as they serve; burdened by heavy caseloads and limited resources, they are leaving their roles after an average of only 2.5 years, often abruptly due to burnout.
What if we could make the biggest impact by focusing on one key role in the foster care community?
Agency Workers Are the Hub
The role of caseworker is uniquely positioned to reach every other member of the foster care community. They are a “hub” of the entire system, interacting with foster parents, children in foster care, biological parents, and more.
When workers are not properly supported, encouraged, and cared for and they abruptly leave, it can have a devastating impact on children and families. It contributes to increased time in foster care, a higher risk of placement disruption, and triggers feelings of abandonment, being unwanted, and feeling forgotten.
Our very own, Jami Kaeb, explained why this is the case at a recent event with Praxis. Click to watch the four-minute video below:
Caseworkers desperately need someone in their corner to encourage, listen, learn, and understand how to partner with them.
How to Offer Critical Support
This reality is why The Forgotten Initiative (TFI) champions a worker-centered and agency-centered model of support. Caseworkers need the support of local churches and individuals to continue to do this critical role that affects so many. This is why we exist! By strategically supporting a few, we can influence many. Consider the impact we had in 2023 as 2 TFI Coaches supported 57 volunteer Advocates who then engaged 277 churches. Those churches supported 82 agencies which impacted 2,700 workers who then impacted the lives 14,000 children.
Agency workers need the kind of support that nearly every church in their community has to offer. At the same time, church leaders are often unaware of how to effectively serve their local agencies. They desire to care for the vulnerable in their communities, but they aren’t always sure where to start.
A common phrase you may have heard is “hurt people, hurt people” but we are working to shift this narrative and instead champion the positive: “Well cared for people care well for people.” We can reach the most vulnerable in our communities with the redemptive love of Christ by caring well for the people who care for them!
“Well cared for people care well for people.”
Well-supported workers will more effectively serve children, leading to better outcomes more consistently for all involved. This is why The Forgotten Initiative exists; to see every foster care caseworker supported by local churches. We help churches support foster care agencies across America through awareness, encouragement, and advocacy.
Our goal each and every day is to raise national awareness of the need for caseworker support, encourage churches to depend on Jesus as they serve their neighbors in foster care, and coach volunteer TFI Advocates to guide churches to effectively support agencies and caseworkers in their communities.
Join Us for a Live Q&A: Discover How Your Church Can Support the Foster Care Community
Have you ever wondered how your church can make a meaningful difference in the lives of foster children, families, and the agency workers who serve them? The Forgotten Initiative is here to bridge that gap. Our mission is to connect churches with their local agencies to offer practical support, encouragement, and resources to those on the frontlines of foster care.
Whether you’re a pastor exploring ways to engage your church, a foster parent who’s seen the need firsthand, or simply someone with a heart for vulnerable families, we have a free event for you!
Choose the time that works best for you from our available Q&A sessions, and learn practical ways to wrap your church around the foster care community.
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