St. Louis community groups, foundations and businesses

donate $125,000 to Boys & Girls Town of Missouri to help children in foster care

Program reducing multiple placements for foster children is the only one in Missouri

St. Louis, Mo. (Sept. 25, 2009) - St. Louis Mental Health Board, Daughters of Charity Foundation of St. Louis, ESCO Technologies Foundation and Peabody Energy Corporation have funded grants totaling $125,000 to support the continuation and expansion of a unique program that helps children in foster care in the City of St. Louis remain stable in their foster homes and prevent placement disruptions.

            The grants support Boys & Girls Town of Missouri's Fostering Futures program which helps foster parents care for troubled children.  Many children in foster care are removed from unsafe home environments.  This can result from suspected abuse or neglect, illness, substance abuse or when no caretaker is available to care for the child.

            For some children, change from home to a new environment can be devastating.   The child can become confused, angry and resistant.  A foster parent not prepared to deal with these behaviors might request a child be removed and placed in another foster home.  Children in foster care might live in multiple homes within a year - leading to increased confusion, anger and frustration - and emotional and developmental risk.

            Fostering Futures assists foster parents in dealing with behavioral and emotional incidents by providing support and education, crisis intervention, and therapeutic services.  With this support foster children experience longer stays and greater stability. Fostering Futures has served 134 children and families since 2006.  Of this group, 74 percent of the foster children remained in the same home for at least one year. 

            "We are the only agency in the state that offers this unique and wonderfully successful program," according to Michelle Reyna, director of community services. 

            Support from these agencies will enable the program to continue and expand the breadth of services offered.

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