October Newsletter
Updates and Events for Washington Caregivers

Change the Story
of a Child
•••
Change the Story
of Foster Care!
With the launch of the new Department of Children Youth and Families, we believe there is a window of opportunity to recreate Washington Foster Care. Change the Story is a campaign and a movement to create a new culture through transparent communication, unified relationships and teamwork. We are partnering with DCYF to accomplish this by interviewing new staff members and other leaders connected to foster care throughout our state. We invite you to join us as we all do our part to Change the Story!
#ChangeTheStory
THERAPEUTIC PARENTING BLOG
Dear Dena,
My foster baby left over a year ago and I am still grieving... I know reunification is the goal. But I didn’t anticipate the emotional toll it would take on me and my family when she left... or how long the grief would linger. How do I get through this?"
Signed,
Still Grieving
YAKIMA WORKSHOP - NOV 2018
We were overwhelmed by the response to our first Trauma Informed Parenting Workshop where registration filled up in just 5 hours! We are already planning more trainings around the state. Stay connected and watch for details!
Trauma informed parenting workshops are intended to provide parents and caregivers with information, insight, and practical tools for parenting children who have experienced trauma or loss. Understanding how the brain and the body are affected by trauma allows parents to respond with intentional and helpful interventions. This enables children to heal and grow and families to stabilize and offer secure attachment opportunities. Trauma and attachment are directly correlated to one another and therefore trauma informed care allows parents and caregivers to help heal attachment wounds and create new potential for secure attachment.

In the Swag Shop, you'll find our signature jewelry and accessories, custom designed by our Fostering Change team. With inspirational words and designs, our swag is meant to encourage people and also makes a great foster care conversation starter! All proceeds go directly toward funding our organization.

Key to Change Necklace
(your choice of bezel)
Leather Arrow
Bracelet
Chosen Necklace
(with birthstone charm)
No matter your role, being part of the foster care system can be very stressful. This applies to the foster families, social workers, CASA’s, and state/agency staff. Both chronic and discrete, extreme stress can take a toll. “Self-care” is a new catchphrase in today’s society. But what does it really mean? It is much more than a massage, lunch date, or movie night, which are all great treatment strategies. Instead, we should approach self-care from a prevention standpoint.
Five aspects of self-care are:
PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL, SOCIAL, EMOTIONAL & SPIRITUAL.
In future newsletters, we will examine these five aspects and offer ideas
and tools for creating a personalized self-care plan.
Stay tuned!!!
WE NEED YOU
to help improve the Foster System!
Children entering foster care have already experienced lasting trauma. You can help create a system that builds resiliency in our youth and builds them up to their full potential. Your support goes toward creating a child-centric foster system, paving the way to a bright future for our most vulnerable children.
Fostering Change WA is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Thank you for joining our community and for your generous financial support!