CAFCA Foster Care Committee Minutes

4/20/06

Present: Brooke Davidson (Lost and Found), Bonnie McNulty (CSFPA), Kurt Olsson (LDS Family Services), Melissa Maile and Amanda Schroeder (Catholic Charities)

Brooke asked the committee for a volunteer to take minutes.  She asked to have a new volunteer to take minutes at each committee meeting.  Melissa volunteered.  Brooke said thank you to Melissa for setting a good example of volunteerism.

May is National Foster Parent Appreciation Month.  Upcoming events include: 

• Wed. May 3, 2006 Rally at Lincoln Park in Denver.  Meet and honor foster parents around the state.  The event is from 12-1:30pm.
• Sunday, May 7, 2006- Buy your tickets for the Rockies game through CSFPA and come dressed in turquoise to honor Colorado’s foster parents.
• Saturday, May 13, 2006- Foster and Kin Parent Celebration at Destiny Ranch.  This FREE event includes live music, entertainment, food, and drawings for gifts!  Please call Valerie Jenkins to RSVP at 303-866-4306.

Please encourage all of your foster families and staff to attend these events!  Let’s support our foster parents!!!

Brooke presented information on a fundraiser their agency is participating in.  It is the ACF Colorado Chefs Association’s 2006 Colorado Celebrity PRO/AM, “Color Me a Cooking Classic”.  For more information contact Bernadette Garcia at Lost and Found Inc.  Her phone number is 303-420-8020 ext. 1203.

Kurt Olsson brought up concerns he and his agency have regarding SAFE updates.  Currently, the Agency Letter sent out by CDHS states that for an update, families need to complete Questionnaires I and II which is information that has already been processed and assessed during the original home study.  These questionnaires refer to mostly historic information that has been covered as opposed to update information of what has occurred in the family over the past year.  The committee decided to work together with the Adoption Committee by having Melissa send a letter/email to Connie Vigil, Mary Griffin, and Dana Andrews briefly discussing concerns about the update process and then to ask them to participate in a conference call specifically on the topic of updates.  Kurt said that he would then ask Susanna (CAFCA) to re-send out the email asking agencies for feedback on the Agency Letter but specifically related to the update.  He will also ask Susanna to send to CPA Network for feedback.  Brooke also volunteered to bring up SAFE concerns at the next CPA Network meeting.  There will be a deadline to receive the feedback prior to the conference call.  Then, we’ll present the information during the conference call.  Kurt and Melissa have volunteered to participate in the conference call and other volunteers are needed. 

Melissa and Brooke shared that on the SAFE conference call Wednesday, April 19, 2006, CDHS asked for volunteers from both public and private agencies to sit on several workgroup committees.  One would be to help write and review a “handbook” of how to complete a SAFE home study.  Another would be to assist in the development of an update questionnaire and template for foster care and adoption, and then a separate group would meet for international updates.  If you are interested in being involved in one or all of these workgroups, please contact Dana Andrews at 303-866-5946.  Melissa volunteered while on the call and Kurt stated that he would call Dana to volunteer.  

Kurt reported that the bill was passed regarding dual licensure.

The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 25^th from Noon-1:30pm at Hadley’s coffee shop.  (They have coffee, tea, and serve lunch and snacks.)

Respectfully submitted,

Melissa Maile
Catholic Charities
April 21, 2006