Fostering Hope: Colorado Springs Nonprofit Provides Extended Family Support for Foster Families and Youth

Fostering Hope, a Colorado Springs-based nonprofit, provides vital support to foster families and young adults transitioning out of foster care. Established in 2006 by child abuse pediatrician Angela Carron, through dedicated volunteers, the organization addresses the critical need for stability, developmental experiences, and enriching relationships for children in foster care in the Pikes Peak region.

Currently, thirty teams, each comprising six to eight volunteers, support 30 foster families with 75 to 100 children across El Paso and Teller Counties. Volunteers are recruited from faith communities and undergo thorough background checks and four hours of training. Monthly meetings support building relationships and provide a crucial outlet for families to share their needs. As extended family supports, these teams assist with childcare, transportation, household tasks, and meal provisions. 

“People are seeing what you’re going through and showing up to say I care by delivering that meal. So, it’s so much more than just a meal. You don’t have to spend the time cooking for all those children, but you’re also being seen and cared for, which helps lessen the load that you’re carrying to be able to focus on the need at hand. That’s the point with the team approach, we’re serving the whole family with the parents as the guide for what they need,” explains Program Director Jennifer Swan, highlighting how volunteer teams care for foster families.

While volunteers commit to at least one year of support, relationships often extend much longer.

“When we started, we didn’t want people coming in and out of these kids’ lives. They’ve had enough instability, so we tried to do everything we could in developing this model to create some level of consistency and stability,” states Executive Director Brian Newsome, emphasizing the lasting relationships between volunteers and families. “The model is that they engage in and create meaningful relationships and those relationships last. I’m thinking of one family in particular who has had a team for about a decade.”

Over the past 19 years, Fostering Hope’s core program has served over 170 foster families, all of which were referred by child placement agencies. The organization specializes in supporting families regardless of their needs, supporting families with large sibling groups, medically fragile children, older youth, or children with complex trauma. This model has yielded significant positive outcomes whereas 60% of families reported they would have quit without team support. Additionally, disruption rates for children in supported homes dropped from as high as one-third to 10-15 percent. 

Approximately 10 years ago, Fostering Hope also recognized the struggles young adults faced after leaving foster care. From that, the Fostering Adulthood program segment evolved from the core program. The Fostering Adulthood program segment begins while older teens are still in care, preparing them for independent living.

“Fostering Hope basically functions like a family. When these kids grow up and age out, we’re just adapting to their needs as young adults. When you think about a team supporting that home, you should look at them like aunts, uncles and grandparents for the young adults. If you think about an adult biological kid, you might have that aunt or uncle who will help them find that network to that first job, free up opportunities, or just be that person they can talk to about whatever they’re dealing with,” Brian explains, detailing the evolution of the Fostering Adulthood program segment.

Fostering Adulthood adapts the core program’s relationship-based model to the needs of young adults, creating a safe space for learning and growth. The program also includes bi-monthly self-care groups and monthly “Haven” events, where young adults connect with peers and volunteers.  Like the primary program at Fostering Hope, the Fostering Adulthood Program assists with transportation, career development, and housing, including apartments available for lease.

“Our goal for the young adults is to have three healthy adult relationships in their life. One of those can often be the foster parent that they’ve stayed in touch with and then one of our coordinators and maybe a volunteer. Because they’ve come from our families that had teams, some of those team members stick with them on their journey as well. They need those healthy trusted adults who they can go to when they’re adulting and it gets pretty scary and they make mistakes,” Brian shared.

The Fostering Adulthood program has also demonstrated positive outcomes. Of the young people served over the past 10 years, all have graduated or received a GED, overcoming the statewide average former foster youth graduation rates around 46%. Only 7% of program participants have experienced homelessness, significantly lower than the national average of 30-40%. Notably, 13 children of Fostering Hope’s young adults are currently thriving and not involved with the system, effectively disrupting intergenerational cycles of involvement in child welfare.

“We’re using a coaching approach to ask deep and meaningful questions of the kids to help them think through the life decisions that they’re making because they’re in charge of their lives. We’re just here to be a thoughtful sounding board to engage with them in making those decisions,” Jennifer notes, describing Fostering Adulthood.

After nearly 20 years in the Pikes Peak region, Fostering Hope plans to expand its extended family model to other communities. If you are in the Pikes Peak region (El Paso and Teller Counties), you can learn more about how to get involved with Fostering Hope on their How to Help page.