Community Beyond the System

WHEN CHILDREN AND FAMILIES HAVE A COMMUNITY OF SUPPORT, THEY CAN BREAK GENERATIONAL CYCLES FOR YEARS TO COME.

What if vulnerable children and families had somewhere else to turn besides an overburdened system?

What if instead of being a case number, they were people with names and faces –where someone knew them, their story, and their needs?

What if the gaps could be closed between what the system provides and what they need to thrive?

This is the power of Community Beyond the System.

At Foster Village, we surround every type of family experiencing foster care – foster parents, kinship families, reunifying families, and former foster youth – with a village of support that dismantles isolation and empowers families to break generational cycles for years to come.

We go where the system can’t, giving families wraparound support throughout their foster care journey – support like tangible items, connection, therapeutic resources, and help navigating the complexities of the system.

WE DO THIS BY:

• Providing a dignified place to gather and bring all parties of the child welfare community together in a safe and inviting environment

• Truly getting to know the children and families we serve to match them with the resources they need most

• Connecting families to each other and to seasoned professionals who can offer encouragement and guidance when the journey gets tough

• Providing trauma-informed training and therapeutic tools to help families resource the children in their care who have experienced trauma

• Walking alongside reunifying parents as they restore their families to help them overcome challenges and break generational cycles of adversity

THIS VILLAGE ISN’T SOMETHING WE’VE CREATED. THIS VILLAGE IS YOU.

Your generosity and support is building a Community Beyond the System that changes everything for vulnerable children and families.

Despite navigating a broken system, families like Megan, Jeff & Tina, and Tiffany, are thriving thanks to the support of people like you.

What Community Beyond The System Looks Like For Megan

Megan met with Foster Village before she aged out of the system, shortly after she transitioned into a new foster home and was already parenting a child herself. One of our team members connected with her immediately, and Megan soon became a regular visitor to our resource center. We had the opportunity to become part of her village of support and cheer her on as she turned 18 and started building a life for herself and her son.

One of the biggest barriers for Megan was transportation. She worked hard to secure her dream job and get her son into daycare, but without reliable transportation, it was a daily struggle to make it work.

Through Foster Village’s partnerships in the community and the generosity of our village, we were able to gift Megan and her son a new car that they can rely on for years to come.

Through our programs, we have worked with Megan to find solutions to break through the barriers she faces and establish self-sufficiency with the support of a caring community.

She no longer feels like she has to break this cycle alone. With a trusted village by her side, Megan feels empowered to keep making the choices that will lead to a better future for her and her son. She and her son are now on the road toward a new legacy of hope for their family, and we will continue cheering them on along the way.

What Community Beyond The System Looks Like For Jeff And Tina

When Jeff and Tina got the call about their emergency placement, one of our on-call volunteers stepped up to deliver a Welcome Pack full of necessities that following morning. Not only did this help reduce the overwhelm of meeting a child’s immediate needs, but Jeff and Tina breathed easier knowing they weren’t on the journey alone and that Foster Village was there to support them.

During their first year fostering, Jeff and Tina got connected to other foster families and caregivers through our Support Gatherings. Each time they felt tempted to quit, the support of Foster Village sustained them, whether through a parents’ night out, a therapeutic resource for a kiddo who had experienced trauma, or help understanding the court and legal system.

Jeff and Tina recently agreed that they could accept more than one child if the need arose. And they are now helping to mentor and support new foster families who are navigating the system for the first time.

Their calling looks bigger than they ever expected. They’re not only caring for vulnerable children in their community, but they’re caring for other families like theirs, making it possible for more and more people to be the village of support children need.

What Community Beyond The System Looks Like For Tiffany

Tiffany is working consistently at a local restaurant and has been navigating the difficulty of securing safe, reliable childcare for her boys during her shifts. Since most daycares only accommodate the typical 8-5 job, this is a significant challenge.

But Tiffany knows she has someone she can call whenever she is in a bind: the foster family who cared for Max from birth until his reunification. Through our Partners in Permanency program, Max’s foster mom has been able to maintain a relationship with Tiffany and has become one of the most stable support systems Tiffany has ever known.

Not only does Max’s foster mom provide childcare while Tiffany is at work, but she lets us know when Tiffany is facing a challenge, like being sick and not being able to work, so we can provide resources and help her keep her family together even through hard times.

Before, Tiffany felt like she was just one setback away from losing her son again. But now, she knows she can navigate challenges that arise because she has a village to turn to, giving her hope for the future and strength to keep moving forward.

COMMUNITY BEYOND THE SYSTEM IS REWRITING STORIES FOR FAMILIES LIKE MEGAN, JEFF AND TINA, AND TIFFANY.

They have gone from the burden of generational trauma to breaking generational cycles, from navigating a broken system to building thriving families.

All thanks to the support of people like you who are creating a village of support for children and families here in Austin.

Through your generosity, you are surrounding families with the love and care they need to thrive – and creating new communities beyond the system as caregivers support each other, we support reunifying families, and reunifying families support their children in the way they’ve always wanted to.

Instead of just intersecting with a broken system, families are now intersecting with each other, creating new extended families and beautiful villages of love throughout our community.