No doubt about it, our frontline workers make everything we do at Saint Francis possible. Yet, they would probably be the first to admit that they can’t do it alone. Without the collaboration, cooperation, and passion of our foster, kinship, and adoptive parents, Saint Francis would find providing for the healing and hope of children and family much more difficult.
What does Christmas mean to you? For many of us, it’s about family … and home. After all, that’s what Christmas is really about, isn’t it? A child, a family, a safe place to lay our heads?
Maria Brady used to suffer from insomnia. Whether from relief or fatigue, she has little difficulty falling asleep now. On November 9, she and her husband, Scott, finalized the adoptions of her two biological grandchildren and their half-sister, ending a four-year odyssey through the foster care and court systems.
Energetic and funny, 10-year-old Ian enjoys swimming, playing video games, watching movies, and spending time outdoors. Since he’s so active, Ian also likes to burn energy by participating in athletic activities like football.
Salina, Kansas – November 21, 2022 – Saint Francis Ministries has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Southwest Kansas to help expand the nonprofit’s Family Centered Treatment® in-home prevention services to families living in the southwest part of the state.
“If the only prayer you ever say in your entire life is thank you, it will be enough.” This quote by 12th century priest and mystic Meister Eckhart points to the great spiritual power of gratitude. Living with gratitude not only has the capacity to deepen our spiritual lives, it’s also good for our health and quality of life.
Children come to foster care from all walks of life and every community. Most enter foster care due to abuse or neglect, while others exhibit behavioral disorders. As a foster care provider, Saint Francis strives to keep sibling groups together and in their home community. If possible, we place them with family members. Yet sometimes that’s not possible. Still, whatever the child’s story, foster care is and should always remain a last resort.
There’s the family you were born into and the family you choose. John Arellano, JP, has both. One of Saint Francis Ministries’ longest serving foster parents, he’s built his family by becoming family to many of the 175 boys he’s fostered since 1999. And he’s done it as a single parent, most recently by working full-time as a truant officer for the Garden City, Kansas, school district and at his local YMCA.
Joshua’s passion is art and anything having to do with superheroes. The 7-year-old keeps busy and engaged through his art and craft projects and enjoys hanging his artwork in his bedroom and seeing it displayed throughout the home.
Throughout October our IT department has talked about cybersecurity. For Saint Francis Ministries – as for any child welfare agency – cybersecurity is essential. An important part of our care for the children and families we serve involves the protection of their privacy. This includes their medical and treatment information, as well as their case files. In most cases, it also involves their identities.