Respite caregivers are also certified through St. Joe’s and keep a child for a designated amount of time so foster parents can have a break. The length of time can vary depending on the need, but the typical respite is a weekend. Respite caregivers can attend our support groups, events and utilize our on-call support and crisis intervention service when needed.
Foster care is the temporary care of a child whose goal is to return to the home. Foster parents must be willing to support a foster child’s ongoing contact with their biological parents and cooperate with the agency’s efforts to reunite them with their families. The foster parent’s direct involvement with the birth family is determined on an individual basis.
If reunification with their families is not possible, the foster parent is given the choice of proceeding with adoption. All of the children we serve are foster children and remain in the foster care system until the day you go to court and finalize your adoption. You will be considered foster to adopt parents until that day. Although the child is living in your home, they are still in state custody for at least six months prior to finalization of the adoption. There is no risk that they will be moved to another home because they are in your home for adoptive placement.
