Voices – Supporting Diversity

Uplifting Kinship Care Families

If you are a kinship caregiver, take a moment to breathe deeply and appreciate the good you are doing—even, or maybe especially, if raising your relatives sometimes feels challenging. If you are a friend or community member, consider ways you might be able to support the kinship caregivers in your life. Sharing dinner together sometimes, helping a child with homework, or offering a listening ear may benefit you as well as the families you support. If you work with kinship families, take some to appreciate the hard work you’ve already done.

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Blooming flower

Blooming Beyond Foster Care: A review of the novel The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

At 18 and aging out of a group home, Victoria Jones is like many youth who have experienced the foster care system and failed adoptions. The jumble of care and trauma that has marked her path has left Victoria remote, on edge, and uncertain of how to trust herself or others. For years, she has believed that her challenges mean she is not worth a vibrant life.

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Small stream separating a caregiver and a child reaching to the caregiver.

Managing Lifelong Issues in Adoption

If you have adopted, are considering doing so, or work with children, youth, and families who have been joined through adoption, it can be helpful to remember that there are lifelong issues involved. These issues can show up differently at different times. The article below outlines these issues, along with examples of how they might impact children and youth, adoptive parents, and birth parents.

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Helping Children and Youth Heal from Food Insecurity

It’s one thing to be safe, and it’s another thing to feel safe.” – Christa Jordan

You are likely doing everything you can think of to support the well-being of the child or youth in your home. But some of their behaviors may still baffle you, including how they act toward food and meals.

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Ideas for a Fulfilling Summer Season

Everyone in your home might feel differently about summer. Notice, and talk about, what each of you enjoys and what extra supports you might need. Think about how the balance between routine and ease works for each of you. Below I’ll go over some ideas for fun, ways to keep learning, and the importance of using your trauma lens even during the summer.

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