- Legislative Update April 2025A Month of Inspiration and Collaboration! This past month, I had the incredible opportunity to attend a full-day meeting with some of the leading experts in child welfare and mental health, including Dr. Dana Weiner, Dr. Verletta Saxon, and the team from the National Center for Adoption Competency as part… Read more: Legislative Update April 2025
- Raising an Adoptive or Foster Child
Navigating the complexities of adoption, foster care, and kinship can feel like managing seven layers of stress at once. From feelings of rejection and shame to the challenges of forming secure attachments, the emotional landscape for adopted children is uniquely layered. Understanding these core issues is crucial for caregivers and educators alike. As children grow through each developmental stage, the impact of trauma can shape their identities and relationships. Discover how we can transform stress into strength and support these children on their journey to healing and empowerment. Join us in exploring this vital topic! - The Hidden Stress of Adoption, Foster Care, and Kinship
When children experience adoption, foster care, or kinship placement, their stress often runs deeper than meets the eye. Beneath the surface, past trauma and disrupted attachments can leave lasting imprints on a child’s brain and emotional well-being. Understanding these hidden stressors is the first step in helping kids move from survival mode to a place of safety and healing. - A Love Note to Caregivers
A Love Note to Caregivers Bless you, who show up not because it’s easy, but because of love. Because you know that love is worth the cost. I see you trying to balance the impossible: being presentbeing patientbeing enough for everyone. It’s love that stretches you beyond your limits. It’s… Read more: A Love Note to Caregivers - The Urgent Need for Collaboration: Public Safety Officers and Families in Supporting Foster, Adopted, and Kinship Children
Children in foster, adoptive, and kinship care need strong, consistent, and supportive relationships—especially with their caregivers. When public safety officers or school professionals serve as a child’s primary source of comfort in a crisis, it’s important to be mindful that family bonds remain intact. 🤝 The solution? Collaboration and Training. By working together, public safety officers, educators, and caregivers can ensure that professional support strengthens family connections, helping children feel secure at home, at school, and in their communities.
From the Founder – March 2025
From the Founder: What is an Attachment-Focused Intervention? It has been a joy to meet so many of the educators and professionals supporting our children over this past year, especially
Beacon Portal
Beacon Portal
iCARE4 Adoptive And Foster Families is incredibly grateful to Dr. Dana Weiner for her leadership in the development of the BEACON Portal. This invaluable tool is going to make a world of difference for adoptive, foster, and kinship families who are struggling to find the right services for their children. The BEACON portal simplifies the process of connecting families to behavioral health resources, breaks down barriers to care, and helps fight stigmas around mental health. With a goal to provide early intervention and empower families to access support, the BEACON portal will be a lifeline for so many families in Illinois. Thank you, Dr. Weiner, for your dedication to improving mental health care access for families and children in need!
https://beacon.illinois.gov
Walking a Tightrope
Do you feel like every day is a tightrope of tough decisions? Lately, it seems like every choice, at home, at work, and in the world, feels high-stakes. What do we care about? What’s best for our family? How do I make an impact at work? When do I stand up for kids without a voice? Do I need to take on every fight?
Yikes! And with all this pressure, we know our kids are watching 😱!
Remember, as hard as it is, making tough decisions is how we build resilience. Even when you’re unsure, you’re proving you can handle life’s messiness. Life is about showing up. When we step into the arena and take a stand, we model courage and love.
Even when it feels like you’re living in a real-life game of dodgeball, showing up and doing your best has its rewards.
We’re all in the business of making tough decisions. The real win isn’t about being perfect; it’s about bouncing back, learning, and marching forward.
Next time you feel that weight, take a deep breath, trust your gut, and keep going. You’re doing better than you think!
Legislative Update – March 2025
Universal mental health screening has the potential to transform how we support foster, adoptive, and kinship children, ensuring early identification of mental health needs and better access to resources. However, without proper trauma-informed training and family involvement, there is a risk of misdiagnosis, labeling, and inadequate support. At iCARE4, we are committed to ensuring screenings are done right—leading to meaningful interventions that truly help children and families thrive.
Love in Action
Love in Action: Celebrating the Heart of Our Community
February often brings the pressure to create warmth and delight in a cold, gray month. For those in the adoption, foster, and kinship community, love goes far beyond Valentine’s cards and candy hearts.
In the iCARE4 community, love is rocking a baby at 2 a.m., navigating outbursts with patience, Googling teen slang to connect, and bravely seeing the whole child in the classroom. It’s the imperfect, soul-nourishing love that donors, caregivers, and educators pour into our mission every day.
This month, let’s celebrate the love that transforms lives—beautiful, messy, and unshakable.
Love Cannot Be Left to Chance
Why Adoptive and Foster Care Training Must Be Standard
In Illinois, approximately 300,000 adoptive, foster, and kinship children face unique emotional and developmental challenges that demand specialized support. Yet, inconsistent training for educators leaves their success up to chance.
Trauma-informed care isn’t just compassionate—it’s transformative. Research shows it improves academic outcomes, reduces behavioral crises, and even saves schools and the state significant costs. Without universal training, however, a patchwork system risks misunderstanding these children’s needs, perpetuating cycles of instability and failure.
Every child deserves equitable access to care. Let’s ensure all educators are equipped to recognize and support the unique needs of these children.
Read more about how we can build a consistent, trauma-informed system to create lasting change for Illinois’ children.
