Hope for a Broken System

“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James 1:27)

The foster care system is in crisis. Underfunded, tightly restricted, and over-burdened, Minnesota’s child welfare system cannot meet the growing need. Social workers are limited by a punitive system that cannot overcome broken family cycles, and they’re burning out. By the numbers:

• 9,000+ kids in foster care

• 2,000+ are awaiting adoption

• 4,500+ churches in Minnesota

So think about it. Through history, the church has been the advocate for children without parents and mothers without husbands. If every church in Minnesota kept 1 child out of the system, supported 1 child through the system, and worked with 1 other church to place a child in a permanent home, there would be 0 kids in the system!

We want to come alongside anyone -parents, social workers, foster parents, etc.- to demonstrate the love of Jesus for children. Those without family need family most. We are building a home for those facing the challenges of raising children in our present age and fostering the health of the body of Christ as a fellowship of believers united in love.

Throughout the continuum of care, there is a journey many families take from initial crisis to removal of children from home. We want to open doorways of hope to strengthen at-risk families before the crisis and build pathways to helping nurture and restore families after crisis. We want to build pathways to helping families:

- Family strengthening: Nurturing the health and function of the family unit before crisis events develop into neglect and abuse.

- Crisis support: Supporting and encouraging parents, families, and social workers through the turmoil of a child welfare intervention for neglect or abuse.

- Restorative care: Building wholeness in blended or adoptive families through the restorative power of the Gospel and resourcing qualified, professional support.