THE BAIR NEWS
August 2013
Help us as we welcome
August 2013
The Orlovsky Family
They join us in our mission from
Cumberland County!
We continue our welcome to
The Mullany Family
They join us in our mission from
Dauphin County!
We trust in your service, therefore we are
requesting your help to recruit more
families like yours! We strive to place as
many children as possible but in order to
complete this mission; we need dedicated,
committed, and loving families like
yours!
To make a referral contact Alida Ellis
at 717.985.6450
Incentive Bonus Program included
APPEL FAMILY
Here is to you!
Amazingly graceful when teaching
Got Connections?
As we continue to grow, we are hoping to
spread our mission to local churches, and
make the community aware of the many
local children in need! Help us connect
with your church! We are asking you
speak with your supports within your
church to see how we can connect more
pieces of this mission puzzle!
to the behaviors of the children in her
home
Passionate about her role as a
resource parent
Purposeful in her actions and
communications
Excellent in the way she connects
with others
(Must come both nights)
5-9 pm each night
August 5 & August 12 @ Harrisburg Office
CPR/First Aid
9:00 am- 1pm
August 10 @ Open Door Bible Church,
Middletown
Parent Partner Training
9:00 am- 5:00 pm
(Prospective CRR Certifications)
August 24th @ Open Door ChurchMiddletown
This month we recognize the
Jennifer Appel, our resource mother
has been an ongoing asset to our
youth, agency and staff. Jennifer has a
special quality that allows her to teach
effortlessly, gracefully and effective to
the children who enter her home.
Jennifer, we thank you for your
ongoing commitment, and desire to
make a difference!
Passive Physical Restraint Training
Contact Patrick Uther at 717-985-6450 or
Puther@bair.org to arrange and confirm
services for your church!
Please call Alida Ellis @717.985.6450
The Bair Foundation’s Permanency
Department invites you to attend their new
Adoption Info Night!
Come learn more information about adopting
from the foster care system! All current foster
parents as well as those new to The Bair
Foundation are welcome to attend! Light
snacks will be provided.
Saturday, August 10th, 2013
8:30 am – 11-30am
Wednesday, September 11, 2013
5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Wednesday, October 9, 2013
5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Thursday, November 7, 2013
5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Saturday, December 7, 2013
8:30 am- 11:30 am
Please Register with STEPHANIE
PHONE: 1-800-543-7059
EMAIL: sdeangelo@bair.org
Loves The Lord, her family and
mission to serve
Check out The Bair Foundation Foster Parent Resource Blog: http://thebairfoundation.wordpress.com/
Foster children typically perform poorly in school for a variety
of reasons. Multiple displacement from home to home often times results
in foster children becoming dissatisfied with school, and quickly losing
interest. Transcripts and school records are often missing or incomplete
when a student enrolls into a new school, many times resulting in the
children not being enrolled in classes designed to best help them, nor the
resources they need to succeed. Along with this, many times, teachers and
administrators are not aware that the student is a foster child, nor aware of
the many emotional difficulties and traumas that foster children face, in
general.
For a foster child to succeed in school, the foster parents need to
act as an advocate for the child. Everything about a new school, from the
teachers, students, hallways, classrooms, cafeteria, and all that happens
inside the walls of the building, will be a reminder to the student that he is
in foster care, and not his own school, nor his own home. Foster parents
can help this time of transition and displacement, as they help their foster
child adjust to a new home and new school.
Often times when a foster child is enrolled into a new school, a
period of time may elapse before the new school gets the transcripts from
the previous school. This may result in the child being placed in the
wrong classrooms and courses, or classes that the child is simply not
equipped to succeed in. Foster parents need to ensure that all transcripts,
grades, and school records are sent to the new school as soon as possible.
Foster parents can best aid their child by calling the previous school and
having them sent over to the new school.
At the outset, foster parents should meet with the child’s
teachers, school counselor, and administrators upon enrollment of the
child. During this meeting, foster parents need to begin building a strong
foster parent-school partnership. If possible, the foster parent should
inform these school employees of the child’s status as a foster parent, and,
if permissible by the caseworker, share some of the reasons why the child
is in care. This information may go a long way in helping school
employees understand the foster child’s background. Foster parents can
also suggest that teachers set reasonable homework tasks during the first
few weeks and months of the child’s placement.
Communication is vital in order for a foster parent and school
partnership to work effectively. Foster parents must work more diligently
at two way communications between school and community via
newsletters, phone calls, emails, and a school website. Foster parents need
to also embrace the newest technology in such communication modes as
blogs, SKYPE and other virtual media that favor meaningful parental
involvement. Also, foster parents can attend school functions, student
activities, and parent nights and find ways to volunteer within the school.
Visitations with birth parents and biological family members can
often be stressful emotionally for a foster child. Indeed, foster parents
may find that they are “starting over again” with the child. This can very
well carry over into school the day after the visit, or even the day of, as the
child becomes anxious about the visit. Foster parents can help by
informing teachers about any upcoming visits beforehand, as well as
letting those involved know what transpires in a visitation setting, the
possible outcomes afterwards, and how to best respond to them. This
simple step, of informing teachers and school administrators beforehand,
can go a long way in helping all to understand the child’s behavior, as well
as helping to defuse any problems that may occur.
Foster children do indeed have a tremendous amount of
challenges awaiting them as they move to a new home and to a new school
By setting up weekly contact, establishing homework strategies, and by
creating a working relationship with teachers and school administrators,
foster parents will be able to help their foster child be successful both in
academics and behavior in school, in home, and later on in society, as
well.
John DeGarmo, Ed.D.
Speaker, Trainer, Foster Parent,
Author of The Foster Parenting Manual
Helping Foster Children in Need
Kirsten Eshleman
Ruth Hursh
Laura Romeo
Christine Emig
Robert Hamilton
Christine Harris
Barbara Fields
Ben Beiler
Michael Hartman
Larry Komarek
8/7
8/10
8/11
8/16
8/20
8/27
8/29
8/30
8/30
8/30
Years of Service!
Abigail Aswegen(staff)
Diane & Steve Kanode
DeElzier & Jacqueline O’Connor
Larry & Debra Komarek
Kirsten Eshleman (staff)
Amanda Fletcher
2 years
2 years
2 years
5 years
12 years
1 year
ATTENTION SUPPORT GROUP!
August Bair support group
has been cancelled.
Mark your calendar for
September 10th
6:00pm- 7:30pm
Pot Luck & Child Care
with RSVP!
The Bair Foundation: 441 Friendship Road, Harrisburg PA 17111 (T) 717-985-6450 (F) 717-985-6449