How to Help

THERE ARE MANY WAYS to lend support to the county’s foster children:

Adopt a child: San Diego County Adoptions, 877-I-ADOPT-U, 877-423-6788; iadoptu.org.

Foster a child: Foster Home Licensing, 877-792-KIDS, 877-792-5437.

Mentor a child: Youth Mentor Coordinator, 858-503-2620.

Read to a child: Juvenile Court Book Club; juvenilecourtbookclub.org.

Become an advocate for a child: Voices for Children, 858-569-2019; voices4children.com.

Help a foster child transition successfully into independent living: Just in Time for Foster Youth; JITFosterYouth.org

In addition, there are a number of community organizations and programs devoted to foster children. Among them:

Angels Foster Family Network (angelsfoster.com) specializes in foster care and adoption of infants and toddlers. The group also offers an African-American Outreach Program.

La Cuna (lacuna.org) places Hispanic foster infants and toddlers in quality foster homes with an emphasis on cultural and linguistic sensitivity.

Polinsky Children’s Center, 858-514-4600. Monetary donations, as well as new toys and clothing, can be directed to the Polinsky Children’s Center Foundation. Volunteers can help with fund-raisers and in raising awareness of child abuse issues.

San Diego Youth and Community Services (sdycs.org) is a nonprofit organization that has helped stabilize the lives of more than a half-million young people and their families since 1970, with a focus on longterm solutions.

Walden Family Services (waldenfamily.org) provides stable families for foster children, with a focus on those children who have special needs.