A Time of Celebration





The beginnings of Dreams...



One of the things I enjoy about what I do is getting the opportunity to celebrate with the group homes we are connected with.  We have five homes who were chosen as the top five for the Dream Board Competition at our recent Tools 4 Success Back to School Party. The winners receive a pizza pater at Peter Piper Pizza for pizza and games.

On Sept 14th, Tammie and Gary had the pleasure on celebrating with one of the winning homes.  They all had a great time.  Even better, they were able to join in a birthday celebration for one of the girls.  I love it when things like this happen!
This past week I had that opportunity to host a teen girls home .  We were joined by a group of volunteers from Family Life Church, who are getting connected with this girls home. So the ladies had an opportunity to meet the girls and the house manager had the opportunity to meet the ladies.  Everyone had a great time.  One of the girls turned to me and said "Thank you for getting us out of the house.  This is so much fun and a lot better than what we would have been doing, nothing"

OCJ Kids has two more parties scheduled and one we are waiting to schedule.  Can't wait!

How do you celebrate with those you love?  What are somethings you celebrate?  I would love to hear the small and big events that you celebrate with the ones you love.

CPS Squeeze

I remember when the stats for the number of children in foster care were in the 9,000's for Arizona.  I thought that was bad, then Gary, OCJ Kids' President and Founder, comes into the office and informs us that there over 10,000 children in the foster care system in Arizona.  Well, just today I read an article on AZCentral.com and the new number of children in Foster Care as of June, 2011 there are now 11,082 children in foster care.  
The article "CPS Squeeze: More Children in need, Fewer Foster Homes" help to reinforce what we at OCJ Kids have been seeing in the agencies we are connected with.  Group homes filled to capacity and in some cases over full, babies coming into the homes at two days old, and all this leads to tension in the homes.

Just this past week, I had the wonderful opportunity to introduce a new volunteer to a teen girls home out in Tempe.  It was very exciting!!  We played Uno and got to know each other, then in the middle of the game, one of the young ladies had enough of the personality of another young lady in the house.  What happened next could have turned out worse if it wasn't for the staff on duty at the time, she handled the situation beautifully.  There was almost a fight at the house that night.  I think one of the great things that happened that night was that the volunteer was not scared away.  She is going back to continue working with these girls.  To help build up their self esteem and develop life skills as they prepare to enter the real world. 

The need is great right now here in Arizona for foster parents and volunteers to work with these young people, who are obviously hurting on the inside to be so angry on the outside. 

Will you be one who helps these young people?  Will you help OCJ Kids reach out to this lost and hurting generation that are being passed around from place to place?

These kids NEED YOU!  Check out our website http://www.ocjkids.org/ to find out how you can help.

Take action today!  Get involved!

Fostering Connections Blog is Back!

It is good to be back with you again.  Wonderful things have been happening with OCJ Kids over this past year. We have formed new partnerships with more businesses and churches.  With these new connections we have been able to do that much more for the the foster children who live in mini orphanges we are connected with.  So far this year we have impacted over 1300 foster children!!!  And the year is not over yet! 
Our most recent event was our 6th Annual Tools 4 Success Back to School Party.  It was an amazing day with over 300 kids in attendance.  During the event the kids created amazing Dream Boards and were inspired by two wonderful guest speakers Amen Iseghohi and Alejandra Paredes.  After the event was over the kids received a new backpack and school supplies to help get their school year off on the right track.  I was overwhelmed by the new volunteers we had this year.  We had over 90 volunteers for the entire day!!
Each one impacting the lives of the over 300 kids present at the event and most likely were impacted by the kids themselves.

Also this summer, we started a great partnership with Western Destinations to provide a Cowboy Camp for 250 foster kids!  Everyone who had the opportunity to attend the overnight camp, still talk about their experience to this day.  Between the ranglers and the horses, these kids had an opportunity they will never forget.  We can't wait for next summer so we can do it again!

With our volunteer base growing we are able to reach more of these young people in the mini orphanages where they live.   To help them prepare for the little and big things that life throws in their way.  More and more homes are being connected with volunteers and mentors, but there is still more homes that need to be connected.  I had the opportunity to visit a home the other day to drop off a book I had for a 2 year old little boy.  As I was leaving, one of his house mates asked if I could have lunch with him on the following Monday at school, because it was his birthday.   I am not sure what his story is, but this young man age 9 or 10 asking a complete stranger to join him for lunch for his birthday, broke my heart.  I had to tell him that would not be possible at this time.  The small needs of these kids are great and most can be met with a training and an hour or two a month. 
Will you join us?  Check out our website http://www.ocjkids.org/ or contact me at shevaun@ocjkids.org to see how you can get conencted.

I have a question for you who are reading this, what do you want to read when you visit this blog?  Let me know.  Thanks for reading!

Getting a Home

One young lady I know, has been struggling for the past few months.  She has been wanting to give up and not deal with anything.  It has been a challenge to keep her motivated to follow through and finish things.  She is tired of being in group homes.  She is tired of not having a place to call home.  She is tired of not having a life like everyone else she knows at school.  So much that she wants to quit school and just get her GED so she can get her life started. 
Recently, she had a visit from a potential foster mom who has been working on getting licensed to provide a permanent home for this young lady.  These past few months have not been easy for either of them as this young lady is just tired.  Back to the visit, the potential foster mom presented the opportunity to move in with her within the next month.  Gave her the opportunity to have a permanent home, with the stipulation that she does not drop out of school, but gets her diploma.
After speaking with this young lady she made her decision, to move in.  Once the decision was made, with the stipulations and all, her countenance changed.  The idea that finally she would not be living in a group home was setting in and brought an attitude change and a smile to her face.  Excitement for a new beginning, with whatever it brought with it.  She is leaving the group homes before she turns 18!!!! 

I can't explain the change in this young lady justly.  Tears come to my eyes just thinking about the difference in her just seconds after she made the statement she is going to live with this foster mom.  It was night and day. 
these kids need homes!  The importance of knowing you are going to be moved again, being able to normal. 

These kids like this young lady need your help!  check out how you can get involved http://www.ocjkids.org/ .  Become a mentor, a life coach, participate in big events. Get Connected!

New Beginnings!

Last week I got a call from one of our mentors asking for resources for the young lady she is working with.
This young lady aged out of foster care last August and was becoming a negative statistic. 
Then something happened!  After speaking to this young woman and trying to get thru that we found a program that can help her, but she has to apply herself.  I want to be honest with you, I did not have much faith in this young lady to take initiative and I was hoping for persistence from her mentor.
We I got the greatest news in a long time.  This young lady not only filled out the necessary paperwork, are you ready for this one?? She then called the organization that can help her and made an appointment.  I want to make sure you caught that.  SHE called and made the appointment.  When I heard that I nearly started crying. 

I have not heard if she was accepted into this program but we are planning a celebration dinner for the 3 of us to celebrate her initiative to make the call.  To some people that may be something small, but for this young lady (and many like her) it is something big!!!

This is an example of the importance of mentors, someone to walk with with these young people who may not have the support from any where else and just need that extra push to get motivated.

There are many teens like this young lady who need someone to walk with them, are you one of them?
If you said yes, please email me at shevaun@offcampusjams.org.  I would love to get you connected with one of them, to see them succeed!

Catching Up!

So many things to talk about.  So let me start with an update of the young lady that AWOLed.  she is back at the home and getting ready to have a baby and very soon.  Tammie has been joining me at the house on Mondays to help this young lady walk thru this time and have a healthy delivery of this beautiful little man who is coming into this world.
Let me back up a bit and share with you the reason this young lady came back.  She was scared to give birth and wanted to be safe.  So she made the choice to leave the boyfriend and her mom and come back to the group home, where she feels safe.  Tammie says, it is the nature of the expectant mother to find a safe place as she gets closer to delivering.  I am just glad she was able to come back. (more later on this subject).  Now she is back and her face does not have the stress lines as they did when she first got back to the house.  She is working with Tammie, a Doula, and wanting to remember this time with pictures of her belly.  I am thankful she now has an opportunity to have a wonderful experience of giving birth.

Onto another story, you know the more later :-).
This week I had the opportunity to into one of the shelters we are in association with.  this shelter is not down town, it is not a big building, but it is in a neighborhood just like yours.  It is a safe place for teens and children are placed for a short time while other arrangements are made.  Sometimes this is the only safe place these kids know.  this particular house was for teen girls and the stories of these young ladies will break your heart.  They come in with nothing and get a bed.  not only to they get a bed but they get the opportunity to experience a safe home.   As we were talking with the house manager she told me the story of one of the young ladies at the house.  She is the oldest of her family and was the caregiver to her young siblings.  Mom was not capable of be that person.  Because of an incident she was removed from her siblings and placed in this shelter.  On this 16 year old's bed you will find 3 little baby dolls, all gently wrapped in their blankets and safely placed in a safe place on the bed.  This is the only was she knows how to deal with this nurturing instinct she has now that she is not with her siblings.
Another story we were told, was about another young lady who decided to leave, because space is so limited her bed was filled quickly.  Soon the house manager received a phone call from this young lady who wanted to come back.  The house manager had to tell her there was no room, she would have to wait.  Sometimes they would have to wait in juvienile hall until a bed opens up. 

The number of kids are growing and the beds available are not enough to provide places for all of them. there is a need out there.  a need for beds, for homes, for caring people who will be a friendly face, a family, a helping hand.  Some of the kids have nothing, not even shoes.

What can you do to help out? 

The start of a New Year!!!

Last Month, one of the young ladies I have been working with decided to AWOL after we found out that she was not turning 18 but 17 years old.  It was a sad day when I was told that she left. Iit made me start thinking of ways to change what I am doing?  What impact am I making?  How can I effectively help facilitate a mind change in the teens I work with?
These fantastic ladies have so much potential that some of them never grab a hold of.  It is time, now that I have the relationships, it is now time to talk about the hard stuff.  It is time to help them start thinking of their future.  Even if they get angry on the inside because they don't want to deal. It is Time!!!

I got word today that the young lady who AWOL ed is coming back!!!  I am excited!!!  I still have the opportunity to help facilitate change!!

Stay tuned for updates.  It is a new year and I am determined to see these young people succeed!