May is National Foster Care Month, which is a time to celebrate the families who provide safe and loving homes for children who have suffered from maltreatment. DePelchin is grateful for the opportunity to work with foster families across our service areas — Houston, Austin, Lubbock and San Antonio — and provide these families the services and support they need to help children heal from the trauma they have experienced.

Last year, DePelchin cared for 769 children in foster homes and we licensed 140 families to provide foster care. The generosity of our supporters allows us to connect with these families and ensure they are fully equipped to provide the safe and supportive home that children need.

Much of our work at DePelchin focuses on providing prevention services to help families stay together so that foster care does not become necessary — services such as counseling for parents and children and classes that give parents strategies and tools to manage their children’s behaviors. However, there is still a need for families to step forward to provide temporary care (foster care) for children who have been removed.

We understand that those who are considering becoming involved but do not have experience with the foster care system might have a lot of questions. We want to begin to answer those questions and help families gain a clearer understanding of what foster care involves.

At DePelchin, a foster parent must be at least 21 years old, be in good physical health, pass a criminal background check and be able to financially provide for a child. Beyond that, our foster families come in all shapes and sizes. They are single or married, same-sex or traditional, working or retired. They are renters or homeowners, have children of their own or no parenting experience. What they all share is a genuine desire to care for children and the ability to provide a safe and loving home.

The process of becoming a foster parent with DePelchin typically lasts between three and six months, beginning with one of our free informational orientations. Among other steps involved, prospective foster parents must submit an application and other documentation, complete a required trauma-informed training program and participate in a home study to ensure the home meets all safety standards.

One misconception is that becoming a foster family is expensive. However, at DePelchin, training and home study are free and we reimburse the cost of background checks.

Finally, it is important to know that you are not alone. We assign caseworkers to all of our foster families and those caseworkers visit the home at least once a month to ensure that the child is safe and to see what resources the family may need.

Sometimes a family provides foster care until the child can be reunited with his or her birth family, and sometimes the foster family becomes a forever family through the legal process of adoption. All foster parents are important, and all are critical to the safety net we try to provide for the most vulnerable children among us.

If becoming a foster family sounds like something worth exploring, please sign up for one of our informational sessions to learn more. And when Foster Care Month comes around next year, we might be celebrating you!

(HOUSTON) — Hundreds of supporters and friends celebrated the work of DePelchin Children’s Center on April 26 at DePelchin’s annual Families for Kids luncheon. The event raised more thabn $360,000 for the services and programs that DePelchin provides to ensure children are part of safe and loving homes.

The luncheon honored Baker Botts L.L.P. with the Kezia Payne DePelchin Award, which is named for the woman who founded DePelchin in Houston in 1892 when she discovered three babies on her doorstep and opened what she called a “faith home” for the children. When she died suddenly the next year, the faith home she established was at risk of being lost until some of Houston’s most notable women — including Alice Graham Baker, wife of Captain James A. Baker — vowed to carry on the mission. At Mrs. Baker’s request, Captain Baker organized and secured a Charter of Incorporation to formally continue the mission started by Ms. DePelchin, and what was then known as the DePelchin Faith Home Association would become Baker Botts’ longest-tenured pro bono client.

Baker Botts lawyers have served on the DePelchin Board throughout the organization’s history, and some of the most recognized members of the firm have provided pro bono services to DePelchin.

“In my twelve years at DePelchin, I’ve had the opportunity to work alongside Baker Botts partners and staff members, and their dedication to our children and families has been unmistakable,” said DePelchin CEO Jenifer Jarriel. “Everything they do for DePelchin is because they share our vision for a world in which all children are safe and healthy.”

The award was accepted by Baker Botts Partners Scott Janoe, who sits on the DePelchin Board of Directors, and Keri Brown, who sits on the Board of the Foundation for DePelchin Children’s Center.

Sally McDonald of Fox 26, who hosts the station’s “Fox Finding Families” segment that features children hoping to find adoptive homes, emceed the luncheon. The featured speaker was Dr. John “Push” Gaines, a former at-risk foster youth turned youth advocate, author, college football champion and motivational speaker.

Cecily and Rick Burleson served as Chairs of this year’s luncheon.

Money raised at the Families for Children event supports an array of DePelchin services, including maltreatment-prevention programs, family preservation, foster care and adoption, and residential treatment. Last year, 769 children were cared for in foster homes, 140 families were licensed to provide foster care, and 128 children were adopted through DePelchin.

DePelchin recently had the chance to explain our work and provide the public with more information about preventing child abuse on Houston Matters, a radio show and podcast produced by Houston Public Media.

DePelchin Senior Vice President and COO Jesse Booher joined host Craig Cohen on the April 24 edition of Houston Matters to discuss Child Abuse Prevention Month. They talked about ways that individuals, families and organizations can help to keep families safe. Booher discussed the range of prevention programs and other services that DePelchin provides in the Houston area.

“We’re a full continuum provider, so in our prevention programs, we meet with families where there is no designation of abuse and neglect, where families might need just a little bit of support, some skill building, counseling, and things to wrap around them,” Booher said. “We do also work with families who are involved with Child Protective Services, sort of the next step along that continuum, and then we have very robust foster care and adoption programs. So when the most serious types of abuse and neglect have occurred, we have families and staff who are willing and able to step in and help heal that trauma — not just the child’s trauma, but the family’s trauma as well.”

The show began with a focus on how, during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a sharp reduction in the number of suspected cases of child maltreatment that were reported. Those numbers bounced back in 2021 and 2022 as students returned to school and began to see medical providers more frequently. The groups who most commonly report abuse and neglect are teachers, law enforcement, and medical professionals.

Booher also emphasized the importance of anyone who suspects a child is being abused or neglected calling the Texas Abuse Hotline at 1-800-252-5400. He noted that the people who take those calls at the hotlines are well-trained professionals who can often determine whether further investigation is warranted without a process that is too invasive for the family.

“If something doesn’t sit right in your gut — if you have a question or a concern — it’s OK to make that phone call,” Booher said.

You can listen to the full interview at this link. The interview with Booher begins at about the 8:10 mark.

In order to raise awareness of Child Abuse Prevention Month and the need to keep children and families safe, DePelchin Children’s Center has created a garden of blue pinwheels that will be on display in Discovery Green Park until April 17.

Each of the 5,622 petals on the blue pinwheels in the display represents a victim of child abuse or neglect in Harris County last year. Organizations throughout the country use the color blue to raise awareness of Child Abuse Prevention Month in April.

DePelchin President and CEO Jenifer Jarriel and other members of the organization’s staff were joined by local Child Protective Services staff, including CPS Regional Director Leshia Fisher, to set up the display on Monday.

“We hope this display will raise awareness among visitors to Discovery Green and inspire them to think about the importance of keeping children safe here in our community,” Jarriel said. “The number of pinwheels displayed reminds us of the considerable need for services and resources that create and sustain healthy families.”

DePelchin Children’s Center has served children and families in Houston since 1892. Today, the organization uses a range of programs and service to prevent of child maltreatment. DePelchin’s programs that focus on prevention of abuse and neglect include:

• Counseling services to support children and parents. Clinicians help DePelchin clients facing any number of mental health issues, from substance abuse to anxiety to depression.

• Parenting classes. These programs help equip parents with the strategies and approaches they need to maintain loving, caring homes for their children. An example of this is ParentingHelp, a prevention program that works one-on-one with parents and caregivers to create protective factors for their family while giving them a look at why children misbehave, how to get children to behave, what to do when children misbehave and how to parent positively in real-world, everyday situations. Some DePelchin parenting programs focus specifically on fathers and their unique roles in their children’s lives.

• The DePelchin Family Resource Center in the Spring Branch area of Houston. This is a one-stop shop for families seeking a variety of services. Families who visit the center can, for example, sign up for parenting or counseling services or learn about other available forms of support from DePelchin and other organizations.

DePelchin is also an accredited foster care and adoption agency that connects children in need of care with families. Sometimes children enter foster care and are able to reunite with their birth families, while other times their foster families go through the process of adopting them.

“Protecting children is at the heart of our work,” Jarriel said. “The generosity of our supporters and volunteers and the tremendous love and kindness of our DePelchin families make it possible for us to offer so many programs and services that help keep children safe.”

By the DePelchin Joshua Williams and DeWayne Booker

February is Black History Month — a great time for families to explore together the stories of Black leaders, difference-makers, and individuals throughout the country’s history.

DePelchin’s Fatherhood services, suggests that families try to find engaging ways to recognize the month. For example, families can:

• Read and discuss books about important Black figures in history or about the Civil Rights Movement, or read fiction books that feature Black characters
• Visit the Children’s Museum Houston for one of its Black History Month experiences or exhibits
• Attend Rhyme and Reason: A Poetic Celebration of Black History for Children
• Volunteer together or choose a community nonprofit organization to support
• Make and enjoy traditional African and African-American dishes together

There are plenty of good online resources for parents and caregivers who want to teach children about Black history. For example, PBS has compiled games, discussion topics, history lessons, and many other ways to engage children on the topic. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African-American History and Culture has published resources to help parents, caregivers, educators, and others talk to children about race.

Black History Month gives all families a chance to learn and explore together and to help children better understand the past and the present. We encourage all parents to celebrate this month with your children and help them understand and appreciate its importance.

The DePelchin Fatherhood Services offers guidance to parents in one-on-one and group settings. Please visit the Fatherhood services page on the DePelchin website for more information about the program.

(HOUSTON) — The women of Alpha Kappa Alpha spent Martin Luther King, Jr. Day organizing toys, diapers, clothing and other donations for children and families who may need them in the coming months.

The Alpha Kappa Omega chapter volunteered helping to organize the DePelchin Children’s Center Donation Station. DePelchin provides a range of services to children and families in the Houston area and other parts of Texas, including foster care, adoption, counseling and parenting classes. The organization also sponsors events throughout the year to help ensure children in the foster care system have diapers, school supplies and gifts at the holidays. After a busy holiday season in which the organization collected gifts for more than 1,400 children in its care, the Donation Station was in need of sorting and organizing.

“We are beyond grateful that the members of Alpha Kappa Alpha were so generous with their time and energy,” said DePelchin CEO Jenifer Jarriel. “Their efforts will allow us to help more families in a timely way throughout the year. Organizing the Donation Station allows us to get essential items like clothes and diapers to the families who need them most. This event will provide a great launching pad into all the work ahead in 2023.”

Alpha Kappa Alpha is often hailed as “America’s premier Greek-letter organization for African American women.”

DePelchin Children’s Center is one of Houston’s leading providers of services for children and families, including foster care, adoption, counseling and parenting programs.