iCARE4 Adoptive And Foster Families was formed by a group of parents, educators and professionals who believe in the power of love, families, compassion and inclusion. 

We believe adoption can provide a profound blueprint for our world–unconditional love, grace, compassion and inclusive embrace. Through adoption we can see a world where every individual is valued, cherished and empowered to flourish. What is often overlooked in our children’s stories is that the first chapter started with great grief and loss. 

Our adoptive, foster and kinship children have missed that merging of heartbeats and rhythms in the first nine months of the miracle of forming life and the first year of cuddles and kisses and ever-knowings of patterns to establish that bond of trust with the people who now want desperately to love them and heal their wounds. Our kids are survivors and in surviving they develop unique ways of thinking and adapting. The reality is that the trauma of their early childhood experiences lies deep within them and healing those bonds of trust take a lifetime.

This is never more apparent than when our children reach school age. The demands of academics, homework, social media and navigating friendships puts added pressure on their already heightened nervous systems. Add in continuing systemic traumas that foster children face due to multiple placements in different homes and schools, world events like Covid, school shootings and war — they become overwhelmed. Parents and caregivers see them struggle and seek out private and school mental health services, but still outcomes are poor. 

Despite adoptive, foster and kinship children making up 15% of our school population, there is no information on their unique needs addressed in current PD training for teachers or in mental health training for counselors, social workers and psychologists.