Highlights of the impact CYFS has made over the last 10 years helping children and families heal from life-changing trauma, abuse and neglect, and other significant challenges
It’s our 10-year anniversary! This special edition newsletter highlights the impact CYFS has made helping children and families heal from lifechanging trauma, abuse and neglect, and other significant challenges. Join us as we celebrate the meaningful ways our family-centered, inclusive, trauma-responsive, and strength-based interventions have brought about lasting positive change in our communities.
Helped over people build their resilience, strengthen their coping skills, and improve their overall wellbeing.
Assisted over families in crisis — advocating for equitable access to critical services and providing evidenced-based interventions to help them build stronger and healthier relationships.
In partnership and collaboration with others, provided vital support to communities across counties.
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Strengthening and supporting families is how we keep children safe –CYFS has helped over families make lasting changes that prevented child abuse, neglect, and foster care placement. In addition, when children needed foster care, we helped individuals and families become licensed foster parents to provide love, care, and compassion during this uncertain time in a child’s life. And through reunification, adoption, and guardianship, we ensured children transitioned out of foster care to safe and loving families who will care for them for a lifetime.
Candice, a single mom, was referred to CYFS to help her meet the critical medical needs of her daughter Emily. Candice had missed critical medical appointments for her child. Due to her own mistrust, not only had interruptions in crucial medical care for Emily occurred, but there had been a breakdown in the relationships with her child’s important doctors. After learning more about Candice and her own traumatic childhood, it was clear she wanted to be a strong advocate for Emily; but she desperately needed to learn new ways to communicate and interact with the medical professionals helping her child. Her CYFS caseworker offered to attend some medical appointments with her and provide her with modeling and coaching so she could communicate more effectively and build trust with the medical staff. Through these actions, not only was Emily able to get the necessary medical attention she needed, but Candice grew in confidence and was able to interact with the medical team in a more productive manner. As services came to a close, Candice told her caseworker, “No one had ever believed in me. Thank you for helping me be a better parent.”
CYFS Solutions | Special Anniversary Edition 2022 | Page 3 Because every child should grow up safe and loved.
Anyone can experience an emotional or relational problem that is wearing them down or a situation they just can’t seem to “work out.” Our therapists helped children, adults, and families cope with life stressors, strengthen their mental health, improve family dynamics, and resolve issues that were important to them.
Seven-year-old Carli came into therapy to address aggressive behaviors that were putting her at risk of not being able to stay in her school classroom. Through individual play therapy and family sessions with mom, dad, and her siblings, her therapist discovered that much of Carli’s aggressive behaviors were stemming from her frustrations coping with her intellectual disabilities.
Her CYFS therapist was able to reach out to her school, and together, they built a plan to meet Carli’s needs and keep her in school successfully. Today, she continues with therapy, but her behavior is no longer problematic, and she is thriving at school.
Because we all can use a little help sometimes.
We supported over families in crisis — engaging youth, preventing young people from involvement in delinquent activities, providing help for runaways and homeless teens, bringing about lasting change in families, and successfully diverting youth from involvement in the child welfare or juvenile justice systems.
Sometimes children who have been through intense trauma or chronic abuse and neglect experience severe emotional, behavioral, and mental health challenges. Therapeutic residential care can help. Over the last ten years, Guardian Angel Home provided boys with a caring living and learning environment and trauma-responsive clinical services so they can heal, cope, and thrive.
Through in-home counseling and volunteer companion services we supported, advocated for, and counseled over seniors facing loneliness, depression, and loss — reducing social isolation and helping them continue to live independently.
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Because youth are our future and strong families and communities are their safety net. Because every child deserves a chance. Because no one should be alone as they age.
Our adoption experts understand both the needs of families seeking to adopt and the best-interest of children. Over the last 10 years, we have provided children—infants, toddlers, sibling groups, and teens—with loving adoptive families.
After many unsuccessful pregnancies, Pete and Brenda turned to The Center for Youth and Family Solutions’ Adoption program. Then, upon learning more about the many children in foster care who needed a safe and temporary place to call home, they decided to become foster parents. And they didn’t just stop at one! Over the next several years, they fostered close to 20 children. And while each child has an incredibly special place in their hearts, the last four children they fostered completed their family. All four siblings had endured significant neglect, particularly with not getting enough food to eat. In fact, the older two siblings would wait until the younger two had eaten before they would take a bite. When their biological parents surrendered their parental rights, Pete and Brenda knew they wanted to adopt these children. Today, Pete and Brenda are excited to share with their caseworker the progress the kids are making and how they are thriving both in school and with extra-curricular activities. More than anything, they all cherish being a family together.
Because every child should have a place to call home and a forever family.
CYFS has a strong history of achieving excellent outcomes. We attribute this success to our belief in the inherent strengths in all of us, our commitment to what we do, and our inclusive, respectful, and trauma-responsive approach. Join us in being part of the solution! Won’t you consider donating $1, $10, or $100 dollars for each year we have made a positive impact in the life of children and families in your community? With your support, we will continue to compassionately partner with individuals and families facing life challenges, helping them reach their goals and creating supportive and positive changes in the community systems they belong to.
donate 10 x 10!
• Complete the information on the remittance envelope and mail your contribution in!
• Make an online donation by going to our website www.cyfsolutions.org/services/donation/
• Choose monthly giving! When you donate to CYFS monthly, no matter the amount, you become part of the solution all year long! Contact our Director of Advancement, Celeste Matheson at cmatheson@cyfsolutons.org or by calling her at 309.323.6619 to set up a monthly contribution.
• Double your impact with a corporate match through your employer! Many companies support your philanthropic giving and will match contributions to a 501 (c) (3). Our Director of Advancement can also help support you getting this set up!
CYFS Solutions | Special Anniversary Edition 2022 | Page 7 donating to CYFS is simple!
2610 W. Richwoods Blvd Peoria, IL 61604
Become a foster parent and make a difference in a child’s life — and your own!
When you provide love and safety to a child in foster care, it truly has effects.
Call Sarah Hoover at (309) 786-0770 ext. 4229 to learn more!
