There's a family I've been working with this year that is low income.  The student I work with has a brother who is special needs and bound to a wheel chair.  Mother is a full time caregiver for her special needs son. The two students receive counseling services to assist with various family dynamics challenges and adjustment challenges in middle school.  My student has been having difficulty with peer relationships due to low self-esteem.  He has expressed interest in working on his health over the summer and asked mom if she could get him a gym membership. However, mother can't afford it due to various financial challenges including repairs needed for their special needs van.  Student doesn't show interest in many activities but initiated this request himself. Mom has also been working on her health and is attempting to make dietary changes for the whole family to support their wellbeing. Student is too young for the free Planet Fitness summer membership.  Mom would have to get a plan and take student with her. The price for the Black Card membership, which would allow mother and student to enter together, would be $75 for both the month of June, including start up fee, monthly fee, and annual fee (all of these are required to initiate a membership) and $25 for the month of July. A gift certificate for Planet Fitness, if they offer them, would be best, or a cash card to reimburse parent if possible. Thank you so much for your consideration.

This is US Veteran mother of five children. The mother currently has Child Welfare involvement. The mother is on track for the children to return home to the care of the mother. The mother is in need of 2 twin beds with mattresses. If the mother is blessed with the beds it will relive any concerns the Department may have regarding the children having a safe place to sleep. Thank you for the blessings you provide to the families.

This is a family of three young children, 2 boys and 1 girl. This family has current Child Welfare involvement and the children are currently in out of home care. The family is currently working on addressing issues in the home that are concerns of the Department. The home will be assessed and needs to be considered a clean and safe environment for the children. The family is in need of dressers for the bedrooms. If the family is blessed with dressers, it will allow the family to store their clothing and address the concern of clothing in boxes. Thank you for the good work you do for families.

Bowman High School is need of Back to school supplies for the coming school year. We would love if one of our community partners would help us with a back to school drive. We are in need of Backpacks- mostly black and blue or solid neutral colors- we serve Jr and Seniors. We can always use additional school supplies- Pens, Pencils, notebooks, folders, highlighters etc. We are a Title one school and many of our families cannot afford to buy much in the way of supplies for back to school. Any partnership would be greatly appreciated.

Hello Careportal Family! Support is being requested on behalf of an 18 year old youth who is graduating from Antelope Valley High School this coming week! The youth has been in and out of the child welfare system since he was about 2 years old, due to issues of parental substance abuse and mental health. The youth has faced many challenges through navigating the system, but has managed to successfully graduate high school, and obtain stable housing. He is currently renting a room in a home, and is in need of a new bed. He is looking for a full or queen sized bed and mattress, as what he currently has is too small as he is quite tall. The youth plans to begin working and is considering enrolling in junior college as well in the fall. Any support provided is greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Single client only receiving disability is struggling with purchasing a bus pass. Being able to provide client with a bus pass will strengthen the family in moving forward with reunification. Client would be able to get to the drug testing site, services and visitation, this leading to reunification.

Support is being requested on behalf of a non-minor dependent (NMD) living in Wellington, KS, but has an open case in Los Angeles. The NMD entered foster care at the age of 17, due to his difficult behaviors, including drug use and his mother’s inability to provide a safe and stable home. Throughout the past few years, the NMD had continued to struggle with addiction, but ultimately went through a rehabilitation program and is now sober (and has been for about 1 year). Since becoming sober, the NMD found it hard to continue to live in the Los Angeles area, as there were too many reminders of his childhood trauma, and being in the same area led to begin using drugs. The NMD then decided to move to Kansas with his girlfriend, as that is where she is from and where her family lives. For about the past six months, NMD and his girlfriend have been living together in Kansas and things have been going well overall. Both are working and making ends meet. However, their refrigerator has gone out and they are in need of a refrigerator. The NMD shared that he would be grateful with just a simple standard sized refrigerator, so they can store their food. Getting one donated would save them a bit of a struggle, as they are still trying to become stable. Thank you so much!!!

Client has severe physical and mental delays. Our client and his adult sister had been renting out a single room that was not appropriate for our client. They were recently able to secure a new apartment and need a refrigerator and two twin beds to sleep in. These needs will allow them to comfortable reside in the apartment and allow our client to have his much needed services provided within the apartment.

This is a family of 4 with 2 young children, 1 year old and 2 years old. They just moved to a new home. They prepared financially for their move but once they moved, they encountered unplanned expenses. They are asking for one time support in any amount to support them with this month's rent.

There is a mother of two teenagers, Female age 14 and a male age, 16. The mother is struggling with relocating to San Bernardino area. The mother has found section 8 housing in Victorville and is in need of financial assistance with the deposit to move in. The reason I am requesting this need to be filled is that the mother cannot financially afford the move-in deposit $1000. The CSW has explored other DCFS options for funding and in-kind donations. This need is being requested through the Care Portal because unfortunately DCFS does not provide this item, or requests can take up to 8-10 weeks. The mother has complied with her case plan goals and appears to be very happy that the children have been placed in her care. The mother provides the best for her children as she can. During my time with the family and the mother, she has been able to complete her parenting class, make sure that the children attend therapy and most of all she has been able to provide a loving home for her and the kids. CSW has been able to identify the following strengths for the mother: CAREPORTAL REFERRAL (1) Mother able to provide a safe and loving environment for her two children. (2) The mother is resourceful when it comes to her children. For these reasons, I am advocating for the mother to have the need met.

We have a family that has been experiencing many different struggles. The family is currently living in a hotel because they lost their house, and Mom lost her job and the car after having an accident. The mother also recently experienced domestic abuse from her ex-partner that is now in jail. She has 4 children 18, 12, 8, and 6 years old. Her 18-year-old son is currently helping her pay for the hotel where she is also sleeping. We are currently helping the mom find a job placement and assisting mom in finding additional resources such as food banks and counseling for them. We are in the process of providing different supports to meet the needs of the family in and outside of school. A food voucher/ card to a local grocery store would provide a huge level of support for the whole family.

There is a non-minor dependent (NMD) male 19 years of age in need of a laptop. The NMD has been attempting to complete his high school coursework via phone but has not been successful to completing assignments consistently due to the device not being operable for classwork assignments. Although, the NMD is having this challenge, he is meeting the case plan goals and is enrolled in continuation school. The youth also desires to obtain a driver’s license and seek employment. During my work with youth I have identified the following strengths: hard working, respectful, diligent, and respectful. This need is critical to ensuring that the youth can complete high school. This need is being requested through Care Portal because unfortunately DCFS does not provide this item. The cost of the laptop is $300.

There is a Non-Minor Dependent (NMD) in need of refrigerator and window repair. The NMD reported her freezer is still working just fine, however the refrigerator is no longer keeping items cold. The NMD also has a front window that was broken due to intimate partner violence. During these cold winter moths it decreases her ability to keep the home warm for herself and her daughter. The NMD has been applying for employment but has not been successful. The NMD does not have enough income to cover expenses beyond the basic needs of her household. Although, the NMD is having that challenge, the NMD is meeting the case plan goals/court orders and is enrolled Adult Education. Furthermore, the NMD is committed to maintaining custody of her daughter & her eligibility in the AB12 program. During my work with the NMD I have identified the following strengths: when employed she is hard working, she takes great care of her daughter, and she is both a talented cook and hairstylist. For these reasons, I am advocating for the NMD to have the need identified met. The main reason I am requesting these needs to be fulfilled is because it directly impacts the safe environment for her child.