David came to Agape Villages when he was 11 years of age as a result of enduring a long history of mistreatment from his family of origin. What finally triggered his entrance into the foster care system was his father getting caught locking him in a closet for an extended period of time.

For David, he wasn’t totally “blame free.” He reacted to his parents treatment with anger and belligerence. His behavior and attitudes continued on display at his foster homes. Yes, he had more than one placement. In fact, he failed his way through four different foster homes until he was placed in a therapeutic group home program. He was a challenging young man to serve.

The last foster home really tried, but finally surrendered to his resistance to work on things in his life. However, they never gave up hope and maintained a relationship with David while he was in the therapeutic group setting.

After completing the program 2 years later, he was placed back with this Agape foster family. He told Agape Outreach Social Worker, Dave Roach, that one thing he learned was people like his foster parents are what unconditional love is all about.

David is now 17 years of age and in the 12th grade. He has been described by his foster parents as having gone through a complete turnaround. He is respectful now, funny, and enjoys his family. He says “I have a loving family I can call my own.”

David’s happiness is evident by the facial expressions of love and contentment he has in addition to his cooperative behavior. He enjoys sports and everything related to physical activity. He is now on the honor roll at school and his teachers say that he is a role model for other children to follow. Yes, hope can be found in giving second chances and never giving up! We appreciate all those who help us serve youth like David!

Let me start with the 2 most popular questions. 1. How old do I have to be? 2. Do I have to be married? Whether you’re living the single life or you’re someone’s other half, you can be a foster parent. Unlike Facebook, we’re not too concerned with your relationship status. As for the age requirement, you only need to have reached your 18^th birthday. Whether that happened this last birthday or quite a few birthdays ago is of no consequence: there’s no age limit on loving and caring for a child.

In addition to being at least 18, you must hold a valid California driver’s license to start the process of becoming a foster parent. Ask any parent—if you have kids, you’ll be driving! You don’t need to own your own home (another popular question), but you do need to have enough income to support your household. The foster family reimbursement (yes, foster families do receive financial assistance for the children placed in their care) won’t be taken into consideration when making this calculation. So at least one adult must be employed or have some other sufficient source of income.

Confident that you’ve met those requirements? Give us a call! 1-800-566-2225. No, seriously. That’s how you start the process. We’ll do a phone interview and then have you complete the application packet(s). After that, an Agape rep will perform the initial home inspection and you’ll provide us with copies of a variety of documents. You (and anyone in your house who’s 18 or older) will need to be fingerprinted. You’ll also need a health screening and TB test. To prepare you for your new role as a foster parent, Agape Program Director Cheryl Youngblood will guide you through the Agape Pre-Service Training (formerly “PRIDE”). You’ll need your CPR/First Aid certification and, if you have a body of water on your property, you’ll need to complete a water certification course (Agape offers one free of charge). Finally (whew!), an Agape social worker will conduct a home inspection and interview. That’s the short and sweet version, anyway. This is a basic overview of the process (which averages 6-10 weeks), not a step-by-step guide. Don’t be alarmed/surprised/dismayed when there’s more to the process than what I’ve got here!

Still reading? Good. I saved the most important requirement for last. To be an Agape foster parent, you MUST have a heart for kids. It’s a beautiful and wonderful thing to open your home to a child—bless you for being willing to do it. But bless you a hundred times…bless you a thousand times…bless you for eternity for being ready and willing to open your heart to kids who may never have known what it is to be safe and loved. Or who haven’t known it in so long that they’ve forgotten what it feels like. Bless you for having that heart and for actually using it. We need it. We need you.

Written by Allison Rangel, Agape Foster Parent:

In January of 2013 Dave Roach, our Agape Social Worker, called me about a placement for a 13-month-old little girl. At that time, we had already had a 3 month old and 20 month old in our home. We said “yes!”

When we received this little girl, she was scared, terrified, and screamed most of the time. She came with nothing. Agape was on the ball and the next day dropped off a load of supplies. During the next five months, with prayer, Agape’s help, and our amazing Agape social worker, we watched this little girl turn from fear, panic, and anger to loving, nurturing, joyful, and funny.

We were on the path to adopt her when her family members stepped up to the plate to adopt her. After the due diligence was done, this little girl was removed from our home and placed with her relatives. However, this lasted only for three months. Unexpectedly, we received another call that they would like to place this little girl back in our home with the intention of adoption. Once again, Agape was amazingly on the ball. They helped make the transition of her back into our home go very smoothly by outfitting her, providing age appropriate toys, and most important to her – a blanket.

We could not be the foster parents we are for these children without Agape. We could not provide for these children like we need to without the love and support from Agape. The foster children that have come into our home have all felt the love of their Agape workers and they have returned that love back to them. From our experience, Agape continues to go above and beyond to support their foster families. Thank you, Agape!

CAFO (Christian Alliance for Orphans) wants Orphan Sunday to be a local effort, led by individual churches. They hope to see each church discover the best way for their congregation to get involved with addressing the needs of children in foster care and orphanages both here in the U.S. and abroad. Orphan Sunday events vary, for example, events in previous years included special messages on God’s heart for the orphan, prayer gatherings, fasts and simple meals, student-led fundraisers, foster family recruiting and live concerts.

A story found on the testimonials page of the Orphan Sunday website details how one church was transformed by its participation in Orphan Sunday.

“Clay and Tami joined Emmaus Church in Redlands, CA along with their two daughters adopted from foster care. Tami approached her pastor about doing an Orphan Sunday event and he was very supportive of the idea. The last few years Orphan Sunday at Emmaus Church has involved a message about “God’s Heart for the Orphan” and a panel of adoptive and foster parents. Emmaus Church encourages everyone to participate. Clay relayed a story of a young single man who doesn’t feel he’s in a place to adopt but knows he has a part to play in supporting families who do.

Orphan Sunday at Emmaus is one of the largest attendance Sundays of the year. It has grown the church as well, from 2 adopted children in Clay and Tami’s family to over 20 children who have been placed in families from U.S. foster care and international adoption. They even joke that there was a couple who didn’t come on Orphan Sunday because they knew if they did, they’d be signing adoption papers. Turns out they didn’t attend but months later adoption papers were signed!

What’s encouraging about Emmaus Church is the ethos of “everyone has a part to play.” Not everyone is called to adopt and there are numerous ways to support Christian orphan care, from respite care to preparing meals, and mentoring a child in foster care to financially supporting an orphan care ministry or organization.”

Agape Villages Foster Family Agency would love to partner with any church or other faith-based community that would like to do an Orphan Sunday with their congregation. We can have someone come and speak about foster care in your church’s community, the need for foster families, and ways to get involved. If you belong to a church or other faith community, and would like to participate in Orphan Sunday, please contact Katy Partan at kpartan@agapevillages.org.

“Orphan Sunday engages God’s people to put our FAITH into ACTION…as we unite to advocate for the most vulnerable.”

– ANDY LEHMAN, Vice President, Lifesong for Orphans

CAFO has put together a lot of great materials that offer ideas and ways to get involved. Click HERE to view their resources and suggestions for involvement in the foster care system.