ALL-IN Challenge: Governors and States

Los Angeles takes an ALL-IN approach to foster care partners

Assistant Secretary Lynn Johnson and Bobby Cagle (director, Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services) in the county call center.

Bobby Cagle, director of the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), welcomed Assistant Secretary Lynn Johnson to the Los Angeles DCFS office to discuss her "ALL-IN" Foster Adoption Challenge. Assistant Secretary Johnson took a tour of the DCFS call center and met with staff and child welfare caseworkers to understand the unique challenges facing the city and county of Los Angeles. We appreciate the dedication of the staff and leadership in Los Angeles County to be “ALL IN” for children and families!

Governor Brian Kemp welcomes Assistant Secretary Johnson to Georgia

Assistant Secretary Lynn A. Johnson and Governor Brian Kemp

Governor Brian Kemp and his staff met with Assistant Secretary Lynn Johnson as part of her “ALL-IN” Foster Adoption Challenge to discuss their efforts in prevention and permanency. We are excited about all that Georgia has planned for achieving positive outcomes for children and families!

Kentucky media initiative helps recruit and retain resource families who support positive outcomes for children

During Foster Parent Appreciation Month in May and Reunification Month in June, the Kentucky Department of Community Based Services spotlights resource families and reunification on various media platforms. Most spotlights are from the perspective of the resource parent, like the one featured below, which Kentucky posted on their agency Facebook page. These spotlights support recruitment and retention of resource families but also encourage working in partnership with birth families and achieving timely permanency, either through reunification or adoption. View a spotlight about a resource family who provided a safe adoptive home for a toddler while also preserving his connection with his birth mother. We applaud Kentucky’s efforts in utilizing resource families as a support to families and in achieving permanency for children in a way that supports child well-being!

Foster Parents on Reunification: Matt and Wendy Westerfield, the Lakes Service Region - "A Love Like No Other"

”Foster Care. It was never something we ever saw ourselves a part of. We actually wanted to adopt. We have three biological children but have always wanted to be a family with four kids. So we decided to go that route. We started all the adoption process: home study, paperwork, background checks, lawyer feeds, adoption agency fees, Heartbreak when we weren’t chosen, Heartbreak when we were chosen, but for different reasons it also feel through, financial stress because we had used a lot of our savings. 

So we thought, why don’t we attempt to adopt through foster care? So we started the process, attended the trainings and were certified! We had no idea what were getting into be were so exited to see our family grow. We got a call soon after our certification. A baby girl. Our family was so excited, we rushed to get things ready and then, bam, a sweet beautiful baby was in our arms. We prayed over her, loved her, our family connected in a way I didn’t was possible, but then the next day came. They had found a family member to love her, so we watched that sweet baby girl go, and our whole family bawled like babies. You see, I never knew you could love someone that wasn’t your biological family so quickly, but we did. We loved her with every ounce of our being. 

Now we waited again, I remember crying because I wanted to love a little one so badly. Two months after out first placement, we got another call. This time a baby boy. We did it all again! We rushed to get things ready and again our home was filled with the sweet sounds of a little one. Boy, how we loved this sweet boy. He fit right in. Our family bonded, we worked together, we loved him like he was ours. We watched him grow, we saw his milestones. Life was so wonderful.

I remember the first time I met his mom. She was quiet. She was kind, She was open and honest about her life – the good, the bad, the ugly, the hard. My heart hurt for her. You see, before I met her I had a negative view of birth parents whose kids were in foster care. But after meeting her and getting to know her, that changed. I began to love her, to want to support her, to build a relationship with her, to see her succeed, to encourage her and tell her she was worth something because we had something in common. We both loved her little boy!

The time came for our sweet boy to go home with his mommy. Whew, that was so hard. That day, I remember holding him, rocking him, praying over him, singing to him, watching him laugh and smile at me. I took a video after video because I didn’t want to forget that sweet face. When he drove off, our family came together and cried. We laughed at the fun things that we experienced. We talked about how much our lives had changed for the better because of him.

Now, he has been gone for seven months! I miss him daily. I miss his smiles and giggles, they could brighten anyone’s day BUT we are so thankful! Because of the relationship I had built with his mom, we are still able to see him, we get to have him over for sleepovers, we get to bring him on special family outings, we get pictures and videos of his milestone. You see, we are both his family, one of us is biological and one is just built in.

I never knew how hard yet amazing foster care would be. People say, “But how do you not get attached?” Guess what? You do get attached, you do love so hard, you do cry, but you also laugh. This is a journey I’m so thankful our family is on. I never want a family to experience hurt and pain, but when that happens, I’m glad that our family can be a small encouragement, joy, light, and safe place of love for anyone who enters it. Whether it be the kiddos we get or their families. Reunification is so beautiful! I have loved watching our sweet boy’s mom thrive. I’m proud of her. I want to be a support and encourager to her so that she can be the best mom. So that she knows there are people rooting for her, loving her and loving her family.”

New Mexico finds creative ways recruit adoptive families

One of New Mexico’s forever families

States across the country are adopting new and creative ways to do their work under COVID-19 restrictions. New Mexico recently used Zoom and PowerPoint to hold a recruitment event in one of their regions in order to share the stories of waiting children with licensed foster families who were interested in being adoptive resources. The event included a brief profile of each child, along with testimony from each of the children’s caseworkers speaking about the respective child. Testimonies of youth who have been adopted were also shared, along with a story about a family whose journey started out as fostering but ended in adoption. The event was well received, and the region came away with 26 new inquiries on waiting children! New Mexico is looking to replicate these efforts in other regions across their State. We applaud the “ALL IN” efforts of New Mexico to implement creative recruitment efforts to find families for their waiting children and youth!

Governor Kate Brown is ALL IN working with public/private partnerships to help oregon’s children in foster care

Ben Sand (chief executive officer, The Contingent), Governor Kate Brown, Assistant Secretary Lynn A. Johnson, Brooke Gray (director, Mobilization, The Contingent), and Representative Alissa Keny-Guyer

Assistant Secretary Lynn Johnson and Fariborz Pakseresht (director, Oregon Department of Human Services)

Assistant Secretary Johnson met with Governor Kate Brown, State Representative Alissa Keny-Guyer, and State Senator Sara Gelser to discuss the “ALL-IN” Foster Adoption Challenge. Governor Brown has been an enthusiastic supporter of the Assistant Secretary’s challenge and, along with Senator Gelser and Representative Keny-Guyer, is working hard to introduce legislation centered on foster adoption issues. The Contingent, a nonprofit group providing various ways for Oregonians to support children in foster care and the child welfare workforce, is partnering with the Oregon Department of Human Services (DHS) in foster care training and placement. Oregon's director of DHS, Fariborz Pakseresht, has welcomed the innovation that the public/private partnership with The Contingent has brought to the State. We applaud the collaborative efforts happening in Oregon!

Pennsylvania Governor’s Office welcomes Assistant Secretary Johnson

Meeting with Governor’s policy and human services staff at the Pennsylvania State Capitol

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s office gave Assistant Secretary Lynn Johnson a warm welcome to Harrisburg as she met with the Governor’s policy, child welfare, juvenile justice, and child advocacy representatives. Deputy Assistant Secretary Jon Rubin of Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services, along with Deputy Director Tara Piechowicz of the Governor's Policy and Planning Office, led the discussions on various State initiatives aimed at improving outcomes for children and families in the State. We appreciate Pennsylvania’s commitment to being all in for children and families in their State!

Local county office in Pennsylvania works hard to put families first

Assistant Secretary Lynn Johnson on a tour of the Dauphin County Children and Youth Office

The Dauphin County Office of Child Welfare in Pennsylvania welcomed Assistant Secretary Johnson to tour their facilities. The county's dedication and commitment to putting families first is apparent in the programs and services it offers its citizens. Thank you, Dauphin County!

Adoptive families in Puerto Rico play a critical role in recruitment and support

One of Puerto Rico’s forever families 

The Puerto Rico Department of Family Affairs created a support group for adoptive parents waiting for the adoption process. The adoption unit also worked on an advertising campaign to promote adoptions in Puerto Rico, especially for older children. By combining both initiatives, adoptive parents have been instrumental in providing needed support to other adoptive parents and promoting adoption for older children and youth. The support group works hand in hand with the child welfare agency and its adoption unit, and their work hasn’t stopped, even during the pandemic. We appreciate the efforts of adoptive parents in Puerto Rico to not only create a valuable network of support for parents but to promote adoption for waiting children and youth!