We recently started a feature in our newsletter focused on how we truly take our core purpose – “To Better the Lives of Others” – seriously, and the impact some of those organizations we support are making. We’ve featured some great organizations already: Partners in Care, Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) of Central Oregon, New Each Morning, Hospice of Redmond, Habitat for Humanity, Convoy of Hope, Stone Soup Group, Kid’s Lab and Companion Animal Medical Project. This month, we’d like to feature an organization that supports foster and adoptive parents, Foster & Adoptive Parent Association of Lane County.
The Foster & Adoptive Parent Association (FAAPA) of Lane County has a mission to strengthen, support, and educate relative and non-relative foster and adoptive parents who enrich the lives of the children they serve. They offer peer-to-peer support, training, and resources to foster and adoptive families. They believe that love makes a family, families don’t have to match, and it takes a village to raise a child. To quote the late Fred Rogers (of Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood fame), “We live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It’s easy to say ‘It’s not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem.’ Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes.” Foster and adoptive parents are those heroes.
With thousands of children in foster care in Oregon, organizations like this are a great support to families.
FAAPA has a special place in our hearts, especially for our bookkeeper. She is a long-time foster parent in Lane County and this organization has been a great help to her.