What does it look like to integrate mental health and faith? My guest today brings her knowledge, experience, and passion to answer this question. Ashley McFarland is a trauma trainer, psychotherapist and co-founder of the Pineheart Center. Throughout her time in child welfare, nonprofits, the school system, and a detention center, she gained insight into the ways trauma shapes our brains. In this conversation, we explore why it’s important to build connection and safety with an individ...

Going to court can be intimidating for everyone involved in the child welfare system: from foster parents to biological families, and of course, for children. Because of this, it's often the case that parties will neglect to show up for their court date. When this happens, judges have to base their decisions on an incomplete picture of the situation—and key testimony and desires are not taken into consideration. That's why we're so grateful to welcome Judge Charles Griffin on the podcast for ...

1 in 7 children experience abuse or neglect in the United States, according to the CDC. However, the actual number is estimated to be higher due to many cases going unreported. It’s easy to assume that maltreatment only happens when a child’s caregivers are uncaring or intend harm—but that isn’t always the case. The reality is, children are more at risk when their caregivers are overwhelmed, underresourced, and in desperate need of community. It isn’t enough to address the aftereffects of abu...

What if the key to improving a child’s behavior isn’t found in stricter rules, but in stronger relationships? And what should care and treatment look like for children who have experienced really hard circumstances? Our guest today brings evidence-based answers to both of these questions. Darius Payne is a licensed Master Social Worker and Juvenile Justice expert with extensive experience in child welfare and the application of Trust-Based Relational Intervention®, or TBRI®. He currently over...

From the beginning of their relationship, adoption was always a part of our founder, Amber, and her husband’s plan; they even had an adoption fund in their wedding registry! After they stepped into the child welfare system, they felt a desire to support foster parents like themselves—and this vision would quickly turn into something much bigger. Amber Knowles is our founder and Executive Director. In 2018, she launched the Babysitting Collaborative, which would become The Riverside Project’s ...

What kinds of foster care placements are you open to? This is a question that gets asked to all foster parents when they first open their home. Will you take sibling groups? Infants? Children with significant medical or physical needs? Or children with disabilities? Each family and individual must decide for themselves what they are prepared to handle based on their capabilities and current circumstances. Children involved in the child welfare system who have special needs or disabilities oft...

When people think of foster care, it’s typically assumed that it ends at age 18 when a child ages out of care. However, that is not the case in most states. Nearly every state offers federally funded programs to extend foster care beyond 18 years. This is what is known as extended foster care, and it includes programs like continued care with foster parents and independent living situations. Our guest for this episode is deeply familiar with these programs as she oversees them for Texas. Alin...

“When it comes to kids and families in our community, we don’t have to settle for not enough.” National estimates show that, in recent years, roughly 300,000–400,000 children have been involved in the child welfare system at any given time. Statistics like this, while helpful, can sometimes cause us to slip into a scarcity mentality. We may worry that we don’t have enough resources to address such a large need. Or, we might assume that if we’re not able to take up the role of a foster parent,...

300,000. That is the estimated number of children in our city who sleep on the floor. That’s nearly 13% of Houston’s overall population. Having a soft place to lay your head at night is something many of us take for granted. But for the vulnerable children and families in our city, the gift of a bed can mean so much—providing dignity, worth, and security. Our guest for this conversation is passionate about imparting this dignity to the children of Houston by providing mattresses and other fur...

Neither foster care nor homelessness are isolated issues. They both intersect with numerous social issues—including each other. For example, homelessness is a contributing factor to why many children end up in the child welfare system, and it’s also a risk factor that can impact youth who are already involved in or aging out of foster care. Of the 173 youth and young adults currently on the Coalition for the Homeless’s list for Houston, approximately 25% of them have been involved in foster c...