The request is for a 16yr old foster youth that is currently in a STRTP. This youth is doing amazingly well and is a very high achiever. This young lady is a star. She has been so diligent and has been working very hard to complete her case plan and stay on track in life. She loves school and sports. The youth is heavily involved in sports. She is on the Track team and is in need to track shoes called Nike Zoom Rival S 9 Track and Field Shoes. The youth wears a size 9 in womens. The link can be provided to the specific shoe from Dick's Sporting Goods.

This is a family of a single Hispanic mother of five children 2 girls (12 years old and 6 years old) and three boys (3 years old, 17 years old and 16 years old). Mother is working full time, however, she is short on her rent for June. Mother shared that in a panic when she found out that the department was investigating her home, she went out and purchased beds for the children. Mother stated she was so worried that the DCFS would remove her kids because of the condition of their bedroom furniture. Since she spent $700 on the beds, she is short on her June rent. Mother is asking for assistance with paying $700 towards her rent for June.

The family had been homeless for the past 2 years. The father recently found a job but need non slip shoes (Mens size 9) while the mother continues to look for work. The parents were able to find housing for the children are working towards a more stable condition of living. They have four children ages 9, 13, 14, and 16. Need: Mens non slip shoes size 9

There is a homeless family that was living in the park. There are three kids and two adults. This family is living in a motel and is running out of money to pay. The district has paid for ten days for the family. The family only has one day left in the motel. They have found work, and kids are in school. They just need some more time in the hotel so they can find a longer term solution.

A mother working hard on her case plan who is trying to reunify with her two children. However, the children are placed in separate foster homes distant from each other. Each foster home home has its own monitor and due to the family dynamic and monitors availability it is difficult for mother to see the children on the days and times offered. DCFS provides a bus pass for mother and mother will use the bus pass to visit. However, she has to go from one visit to the next and quickly needs to get to her next location. This case is rather complicated in regards to the family dynamic, children’s schedule, caregivers’ schedules, etc. The Department does its best to accommodate mother's schedule, but she does not have extra money to pay for a faster way of transport, so she can make it to the next on time and enjoy more time with each child. The social worker is asking for assistance with a transportation gift card (Ex. Uber gift card card) to help mother to get to the second visit on time. Any financial assistance would be greatly appreciated. .

A single mother with 9 children has put in a lot of effort to secure a stable housing situation after facing homelessness for several years. During their tough times, the family had to resort to sleeping in cars, tents, and other temporary shelters not intended for long-term living. The family is scheduled to move into a stable home on the 1st after the mother had to overcome several challenges to reach this point. Despite the lack of stable housing, the mother puts in immense effort to ensure that her children attend school regularly. As a result of frequent relocation, the family lacks essential household items, which are crucial for turning a house into a home.

A young 22 year old mother is in need of a dresser for the room she shares with her two children, ages 3 and 1. Mother currently has custody of her children and is a single mother, She has made big changes in her life since DCFS has become involved. Her social worker would like to help her out with a dresser so she can keep all the clothing for her and the children in one place. Their current dresser is small, old and damaged. Mother has stopped using substances, enrolled into parenting classes voluntarily, and is in therapy to address domestic violence as a survivor. The social worker would greatly appreciate any assistance to this family.

Youth came to the attention of DCFS when his legal guardian/adult sister requested that her legal guardianship order be terminated and guardianship be transferred to the youth's adult brother in Arizona due to ongoing conflict with his adult sister and her family. DCFS submitted a request for Arizona to approve the brother's home ASAP to prevent having to replace him into a group home. His legal guardian is very overwhelmed, as she has five children of her own and a newborn baby. A family team meeting was recently held and the family was informed that Arizona is still working on the out state placement approval and will not be approved until later this summer. Since youth and his legal guardian are constantly arguing, it was suggested to keep youth busy out of the home with summer school and extra curricular activities. The youth identified boxing as an activity he wished to participate in as well as apply for work internship program. DCFS will be referring the youth to a summer youth program for when he completes his summer school. Sadly, all DCFS funding has depleted for this fiscal year and his legal guardian is on a fixed income and cannot afford to pay for the boxing program that the youth found near his placement home. Youth appears to be depressed and needs a positive outlet. He is a very smart adolescent and with his involvement in boxing, he could channel his mind and energy in a positive direction while he waits for his brother's home to get approved.

HELP REUNIFY MOTHER AND SON with HOTEL STAY assistance: Mother lives 236 miles away from her son in placement. Mother submitted a request to the Court for reunification services to be reinstated and it was granted; the Mother has made significant progress. The Department needs to assess unmonitored overnight and weekend visits for the mother and her son in order to meet the goal of reunification soon, if it is seen as safe. The mother needs assistance to pay for the hotel stays to help with bonding and further reunification assessment by the Department. Mother has done what she can to visit Child in person as many times as possible. Mother is a resilient, focused, motivated, and strong young woman who is doing everything in her power to reunify with her 6 year old son. Mother gave birth to her son when she was a teenager. At the time, Mother was in foster care, she was having some struggles herself and she was not provided with the family support she needed to raise her newborn. Therefore, her son was also placed in foster care.

Though mother lives 236 miles away from her son’s placement, Mother has done what she can to visit Child in person as many times as possible. Mother is a resilient, focused, motivated, and strong young woman who is doing everything in her power to reunify with her 6 year old son. Mother gave birth to her son when she was a teenager. At the time, Mother was in foster care, she was having some struggles herself and she was not provided with the family support she needed to raise her newborn. Therefore, her son was also placed in foster care. Mother has weekly phone contact with Child and according to the caregiver, they can be on the phone for over an hour. Mother engages with Child and always has activities prepared. Mother’s consistent visits with Child, and his 2 younger half siblings, give him a sense of belonging. . Mother submitted a request to the Court for reunification services to be reinstated and it was granted and the Mother has made significant progress. The Department needs to assess unmonitored overnight and weekend visits for the mother and her son in order to meet the goal of reunification soon, if it is seen as safe. The mother needs assistance to pay for gas, groceries, and hygiene products for her family as the hotel stays and the drive are expensive and are taking a toll on her family.

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.

A young adult that has been placed in transitional housing is in need of food cards to help supplement her income. She is currently graduating high school and enrolling in college and needs a little help during this transition time.

We have a new female resident who desperately needs help getting around town for school and doctor visits. Her bike needs repair so we are looking to purchase a bus pass for her. She is a great student who is going to college in the fall. She is a real go-getter and is used to riding her bike all over. We would like to help her get a bus pass until we can fix up her bike.

The Aunt of this child was kind enough to take her sister's child after the sister was unable to overcome her substance abuse problem to take care of her child. The Aunt has two other children under five but understands the strength of family as she had been in the child welfare system. The Aunt had struggled with physical, emotional and sexual abuse but did not have an addiction problem. The funds will assist the family, due to father losing his employment over the last year. The family will have the ability to live without the stress of rent for one month while the father looks for employment. The child is thriving in the home and considers his Aunt his mom. Both family members are looking for employment.

Mother needs two twin-sized beds, with bedding, mattresses, and frames for her two children. Since successfully reunifying with her three children, mother has been working on providing for them as a single mother and has attempted to save for beds, but has not been successful. Although, mother is having that challenge, mother is meeting the case plan goals, court orders and is enrolled in substance abuse prevention and parenting. Furthermore, mother is committed to maintaining the family together. During csw work with mother, she has identified the following strengths: mother is an advocate for her children’s needs, she accepts support and feedback from service providers, and is resilient. Mother’s goals are to close the case with court, receive the appropriate mental health/developmental services for her children, and to maintain a sober and safe home environment. For these reasons, csw is advocating for mother to have the need identified met. The main reason csw is requesting this need to be fulfilled is in order to provide a safe environment for the children. This need is critical to ensure the children have a loving stable home.

A 21 year old uncle is asking for help. He is providing care to his 10 year old nephew who is a foster child. He is expecting his teenage nephew to be placed in his care next on Monday. This child is also a foster child. There is one full size bed in the bedroom. In order for him to have placement of his teenage nephew, proper bedding is required (which means a bunk bed).

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.

This request impacts multiple families.

Foster youth that ZOE has been working with since December 2021 will be 18 in a few weeks. DCFS has not been able to find foster care for her so she is staying back and forth at father and sister's who are nearby each other but are not DCFS-approved placements, but the family members are willing to care for her until DCFS finds placement or she turns 18. Both have limited resources and need help caring for her specifically with groceries or grocery gift card. Household/toiletry support are helpful too but food assistance is most needed. Special Instructions: Communication can be through ZOE Advocate to help with coordination

Mother is in need of 2 toddler car seats with extra padding for her 1 and 3 yr. old boys. Mother was involved in a car accident with her baby boy last year and is requesting a car seat for her children with extra padding based on her previous car accident experience. MO also needs 1 toddler size bed, with mattress and bedding for her 3 yr. old male child, as well as a crib, mattress and bedding/ blankets for her 1 yr old baby boy. Any help would be greatly appreciated for this family! Thank you! NEEDED: -2 toddler car seats for boys ages 1 and 3 -1 toddler bed with mattress and bedding/toddler size blanket for her 3 yr. old boy -1 crib with mattress and bedding/ toddler size blanket for her 1 yr old baby boy