April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month and an important time of year to make sure we all remain aware of and vigilant to incidences of child abuse in our community.  Angels Foster Care is a leader in protecting children from child abuse by providing a safe, stable, and loving foster home where children who have experienced abuse or neglect--and the majority of children in our community who enter foster care is because of neglect--can heal and have a soft place to land while they and their family begin the process of repair and reunification.  

While none of us want to turn a blind eye to child abuse, studies now show that the most common reasons for child abuse are because of parental stress and isolation so when we aren't engaged with the families and children around us, we aren't in a position to help or make a call for help when a problem might be developing.  Additionally, these studies also reveal that only 13% of communities in our country are labeled as "highly supportive" of families in distress meaning are places where families with high risk for abuse have interventions and help before crisis strikes.  Also, The Protective Factors are often identified in healthy children and families. Parent resilience, social connections, knowledge of parenting and child development, support, and children's social and emotional development all contribute to creating strong families. When communities are built to support parents, this approach helps reduce risk factors and promotes family well-being. (reference: childtrends.org)

Finally, we all know that child abuse has a large ripple effect on a child's development, ability to form healthy relationships, their physical health, as well as on the community at large but the negative effects can be greater than many of us realize. We urge you to become familiar with the important study of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE's) completed recently that thoroughly investigates how these ACE's have long term implications for children.  A helpful research brief on this issue can be accessed here.

High quality foster care is one way we can help children suffering from child abuse and neglect. Please remember and honor the wonderful foster parents in the Angels Foster Care program--or any program helping to care for these vulnerable young lives--when you get a chance.