Every November for Adoption Awareness Month, JFS partners with WTVR CBS 6 to present “A Hand to Hold,” a multimedia campaign spotlighting children in Central Virginia’s foster care system waiting for a loving family.
Each day in November, CBS 6 will air the unique story of a youth or teen in foster care, giving thousands of potential parents an opportunity to meet a young individual they might never have gotten the chance to meet.
You may even recognize and connect with someone you already know! We hope to inspire individuals, couples, and families to get involved, whether as foster parents, respite families, or mentors.
There are almost 700 children and teens in Central Virginia’s foster care system through no fault of their own. When youth currently in foster care are taken from their families, there are not enough foster care families available for them, so they are placed in a group home or residential foster care facility. Today, many of them continue to live there, even years later.
Over half of all kids in foster care are teenagers – the most difficult children to find homes for. 250 of them are between 16 and 21 years old and at risk of “aging out” of foster care without a safety net. 20% of children who age out become homeless; half develop a substance dependence; only 3% ever earn a college degree. The future is bleak for children in foster care who never find a family of their own.
Connecting Hearts’ is a program offered through JFS. Our mission is “to find foster, adoptive, and kinship families for every child” who can give them the love and support, and skills they need for a brighter future.
Remember, it’s never too late to adopt! Just one positive relationship with a loving, supportive adult can change a young person’s life forever.
To learn more about children in foster care or how you can get involved, please reach out to the Connecting Hearts Program Manager, Denise Wise-David, at
dwise-david@jfsrichmond.org or (804) 349-0786.
