Family & Childrens’ Services of Guelph and Wellington County (FCSGW) took to Facebook in recent weeks with an urgent call for foster caregivers in the area.

In the post, the organization stated they’re “calling upon our incredible community to help support our urgent need for foster homes.”

The announcement added that foster homes can’t accommodate increasing need and that foster caregivers will help solve that problem. According to the latest report from FCSGW, 163 youth were in care in this region over the last year and 82 required continued care and support.

Daria Allan-Ebron, executive director of FCSGW, believes keeping children connected with both siblings and their community is of the utmost importance.

“It’s always our intention to keep families at home with their caregivers, and when not possible to have them remain in the community with extended family or community caregivers,” Allan-Ebron said.

“When that’s not possible, we do look to foster caregivers to provide help and support,” she said.

Allan-Ebron maintains that when pairing children with foster caregivers, cultural connection is a big focus.

“Kids’ culture and identity is extremely important, and it is a value of ours to make sure that we are making our best effort to maintain cultural connection, connection to community, adhering to traditions, customs, religion,” Allan-Ebron said.

“As we look to support children and youth who may need to come into foster care, we want to be able to match those children with families who share a similar identity to them,” she added.

No previous experience is required, only willingness, the social media post stated, and Allan-Ebron added that one can become a foster caregiver even if they are single or working. She says these individuals support children not just physically but emotionally as well.

To learn more about the program, visit the FCSGW website.

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