Foster Village Charlotte Social Impact Services
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Our volunteer program offers a variety of practical opportunities to get involved and support families in practical ways that make a tangible difference in their foster care journey. Imagine you are the child again and you have a birthday coming up. It's been almost a year since you've been living with your foster family and although you are bonding with them you are struggling with your longing to be with your parents. It's been almost a year since you've been in a home environment and you ache for being in "limbo." But then you learn your party is at the FVC Resource Center and the invitation includes both families.
BUILDING CAPACITY TOGETHER
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Members of the community host donation drives and gently used items are posted on Foster Village Charlotte Swap for further needs. FVC staff follow up by email within two weeks with each family and also to introduce new families to other support services to stabilize the journey in foster care. Foster Village Charlotte creates connection with dignity for children and families experiencing foster care by meeting urgent needs, providing educational and emotional support, and advocating as a collective community voice for children. Foster Village Charlotte is committed to helping children, foster families, kinship families, and/or biological families by creating a village of support during their time of crisis. Staying emotionally present during the difficult transition into foster care takes lots of energy from all parties involved.
OUR MISSION
Even though you are already experiencing toxic stress, being placed somewhere new adds additional levels of trauma. You find yourself without a familiar face, in an unknown setting, without a single belonging. Support during the Resource Development module turned out to be particularly helpful for the organization. “During our time in Cultivate, we launched a peer-to-peer campaign that would leverage this groundswell of support.
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A recent Foster Village survey of more than 100 of its client families found that 75% of caregivers are likely to continue fostering in 2022 because of the organization’s services. All said they depend on Foster Village to learn how to access resources and navigate the system. When a family decides to foster a child, it can be scary and overwhelming.
Build relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro.Try a low commitment monthly plan today. Volunteers put the “Village” in Foster Village, and we’d love to help you find your fit in this village of support. “We have a lot of needs we have to meet, and so foster and adoptive parents can always use extra support in the community,” Diana said. Well, imagine you are a child that has been taken out of the only home and family you’ve ever known.
All kids experience some trauma when they enter the foster care system. And people don’t always realize that even though we “sign up for this” as foster parents, it’s hard. As Foster Village Charlotte continues to evolve, our commitment to these children and families remains unwavering. We are dedicated to expanding our services, refining our programs, and continuing our advocacy to ensure every child and caregiver in the foster care system receives the support and dignity they deserve.
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We need support in the sourcing and hiring process but also in the knowledge of when to grow positions into full time and what is sustainable and livable. An active board leading this initiative is an area of growth for us. Having clarity in budgeting and market-value rates of positions is a resource need. In the summer of 2022, FVC expanded to two facilities. This expansion allows us to deepen our work with our program in development and is central to our strategic plans for the next three years.
Partner Content
They fill out a Welcome Pack request form and a FVC volunteer gathers a bag from the resource center that meets their tangible needs. They drop these necessities off within hours, with a card that includes information about how to engage the Village in the days ahead. As the project kicked off, the team conducted the “14 Attributes of a Healthy Nonprofit” assessment to gauge FVC’s organizational health and structure. Simultaneously, they surveyed board members to create a roles and responsibility matrix, identifying skill set gaps within the board. By February, the team delved into reviewing and reimagining FVC’s strategic plan, marking the 15th meeting and over 40 invested volunteer hours by SVP Partners by the end of March. I was still working full time, I had a new child, and I really wanted to focus my energy on Foster Village.
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Helping foster families and children by creating a village of support in the Charlotte area. You pick up a phone call in the middle of a work day to learn that a child needs you to open your home. You must quickly evaluate your life and decide whether to accept the placement with limited information about the child and the trauma they’ve experienced. You’re asked to come get the child immediately, unsure of whether the child will be with you 2 hours, 2 days, or 2 years. Even with the limited information, you say yes and go to meet the child. You’re rooting for the parents, but also knowing you’re next in line.
Foster Village Charlotte connects families caring for children in foster care to each other and to ongoing, holistic support. Our approach includes support groups, workshops, one-on-one encouragement, foster parent mentorships and family gatherings. We build a peer-driven community that is facilitated by licensed therapists and experts in the field. A comfortable place to connect with people who "get it". Registration for all of these opportunities take place through our bi-weekly newsletter, website, and through our closed Facebook group community. FVC acts as a bridge across licensing agencies by providing families with responsive trauma-informed training, especially those topics not covered in their certification classes.
The child is familiar with the people at the center and loves playing in the backyard. As foster parents engage in professional services and programming, they experience a safe space for their emotional needs to be met and connection with other foster families. And the ripple effect of stabilizing and equipping the foster family directly impacts the child.
Our advocacy efforts have extended to legislative achievements, including the NC Foster Parent Bill of Rights, signed into law in September 2021. We've also ramped up our educational outreach, combating harmful myths and providing accurate, comprehensive information to foster families. This initiative helps foster parents navigate the system more effectively and advocate for the children in their care. Your support gives children experiencing foster care and the families caring for them the village of support they need to thrive.
You play, show them around, and blow out the candles with so many adults that are here just for you. The team launched Foster the Movement, a fundraising campaign that asked foster families, volunteers and donors to share their stories on social media and ask for support from friends and family. The Village overwhelmingly responded, raising more than $80,000 to help continue the services that had supported many of them so well.
Understandably, almost half of foster parents choose to not accept another placement, citing lack of support as a strong contributing factor. Foster Village Charlotte plays a critical role in supporting and maintaining a family’s ability to foster a child. They show up in real, tangible ways, so the families feel seen, understood, and supported.
This program equips caregivers with sensory tools and play-based strategies to help manage children's trauma responses effectively. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic further tested our resilience, prompting us to advocate fiercely for caregivers' needs during unprecedented times, enhancing our virtual support offerings to maintain continuity of care. In the ever-expanding and growing community of Charlotte-Mecklenburg, where nearly 400+ children navigate the complexities of foster care, we at Foster Village Charlotte stand as a beacon of support and hope. Established to address the tangled web of challenges these children and their families face, our mission is rooted in untangling critical issues such as insufficient resources, isolation, and fragmented information.
When Foster Village Charlotte joined Cultivate in 2020, they were an emerging organization that had a groundswell of grassroots support, an ambitious vision and deep passion for local children and families. The FVC team had recently moved into a Center that would serve as a home for their support groups, Welcome Pack storage and space for foster families and biological families to work together to support the children in their care. At Foster Village Charlotte (FVC), the commitment to providing a supportive space for children and foster families goes beyond the ordinary. FVC facilitates connections, offers educational and emotional support, and equips caregivers with essential advocacy tools. My vision has always been for Foster Village to be a safe haven for kids to come back to over and over again, one that’s comfortable and dignifying for their families.
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