What Do I Need To Know?
AFKA exists to support people like you. Whether you are a foster or kinship caregiver, we want you to know that you are not alone on your journey. We are here to provide resources, information, and a supportive community to help you along the way.
If you are here, it means you have already embarked on a unique journey as a foster or kinship caregiver. One we know to be full of challenges and frustrations but also one filled with purpose and joy.
You are creating a safe space for some precious children in your care to feel loved, supported, and home. This is deeply important work.
AFKA is here to help, any way that we can.
So what is AFKA all about?
Our mission is to guide you through the complexities of the various child and family services and help you feel like you’re not in this alone.
When you have questions, we will point you in the right direction. When you feel overwhelmed, we have all sorts of resources to help and support you.
Community is so important for any family, but especially for foster and kinship families. You need people who understand the unique challenges and victories of raising foster and kinship kids.
It can be especially challenging to surround yourself with other people who understand what you’re going through, especially if you live in a rural or remote community where you may be one of the only foster/kinship caregivers.
A Caregivers Guide to Success…
Becoming a foster or kinship caregiver is a complex process, as you well know. There are various levels of approval to go through, piles of paperwork, and a highly involved application. All of these are designed to keep kids as safe as can be. By the time a child comes into your care, you have likely already prepared yourself in many ways and thought deeply about how caring for a child will change your life.
Even so, it’s hard to prepare for the physical and emotional changes that will take place in your life, and that of your family, as you welcome a new child.
AFKA has developed a series of short videos to help with some of the nuances to being a caregiver. These videos are meant to accompany you through your journey, whether you’re new to fostering, or simply have questions.
Our video series highlights some of the biggest challenges foster and kinship caregivers face. We want you to know that you are surrounded by a community that has faced these same challenges. Together, we can share all our learnings and compassionately support each other.
Our Video Series is Designed Just for YOU
The Transition into Care
Exploring topics like navigating the system, making your voice heard, reunification, the impacts of grief and loss, plus several more informative videos, these shorts are meant as a tool in your toolkit when you need it most.
Children generally cannot do any processing ahead of time. They are usually moved into care after facing serious challenges and trauma. They’re experiencing a range of feelings and this can, understandably, be a very difficult time for them. What are some ways you can prepare for these challenges?
The first topic we want to address are the unique challenges of transitioning into caregiving, and how you can prepare yourself and prepare to support the child in your care.
Grief and Loss
The next challenge we want to cover in our series is managing grief and loss. People who are not part of the foster/kinship care community cannot possibly understand the unique heartache that comes from caring for a child who has faced severe trauma.
Children come to us broken and hurting and it can be absolutely heartbreaking to deal with the real grief and loss they may be feeling from being removed from their home, even if their home wasn’t a safe and happy place.
Dealing with kids who have faced complex trauma can mean addressing psychological issues, emotional turmoil, behavioral challenges, social issues and challenges with education. Where do we even begin?
Navigating the System
By now, you have learned that the foster care system in Alberta has many complexities. Navigating your way through the various systems and subsystems can be trying and time consuming. It can be frustrating when all you are doing is trying to care for a child, yet you spend a lot of your time sorting through the paperwork and complicated requirements of the system.
When you become a foster or kinship caregiver you will be working with people from Children and Family Services, Agencies, AFKA, medical teams, schools, therapists, Indigenous Bands, and cultural communities. Each of these groups will have their own requirements and processes. It’s a lot to handle!
AFKA understands these challenges and we do our best to help you navigate these complexities. Sometimes it helps to know that the system isn’t going to change any time soon, but there are ways to make it easier along the way.
Making Your Voice Heard
Having a community of people who understand the unique nuance of caring for foster and kinship kids is essential. There are certain challenges you may face that will be hard for other people to understand. At AFKA, we truly believe that community is everything and we do all we can to invite foster and kinship families into our community.
We see, over and over, how rewarding it is when foster and kinship caregivers discover they are not alone, and that there are other wonderful families working through the same challenges and sharing the same desire to create safe and loving homes for kids.
We don’t just ask for what we need for ourselves, we ask for what our kids need. A huge part of foster/kinship care is advocating our child’s needs. Each child is unique and will need support – whether it’s through the ministry, their school, or counselors. Your job is to be a voice for them and make sure they have access to all the support they need.
Our job is to help!
Our commitment to you is to listen when you tell us something you and your family need and then do everything we can to support you in finding solutions.
Reunification
As we work our way through this series addressing some of the key challenges we face as foster and kinship caregivers, we cannot neglect to discuss the bittersweet emotions of having a child in our care leave us.
A child can be returned to their bio family or transition into a new placement, and it can feel like upheaval, turning your new family rhythm upside down, overnight. One day you may be preparing for holidays, and the next day, you discover the child in your care will be leaving your care. It is normal to feel a wide range of emotions during this time: grief, loss, excitement, and anxiety. Change is hard! And even harder on children.
There is no quick fix when it comes to facing these emotions. Over time, we process how we feel and, hopefully, we can lean on our friends and community members who understand the complex emotions that come with being a foster or kinship caregiver.
The Role of Kinship and Foster Caregivers
As we conclude our video series, we hope you feel a little more connected to AFKA, and have a clearer understanding of how you can access the services and programs we offer.
You will continue to hear from us from time to time, to let you know about events or opportunities that might be of interest to you,
as well as any member benefits we don’t want you to miss out on.
Beyond that we want to extend a personal invitation for you to engage with our team directly.
AFKA exists to support families like you – people caring for a foster of kinship child.
Our door is open and our intention is to be accessible if you need help, support, or encouragement along the way.
Whether you are years into your fostering journey, or just beginning, you are walking a path full of purpose.
It is an indescribable and life-changing gift to provide a child with a home that is stable, loving, and safe.
Yes, there will be challenges along the way. But you are not alone.
We hope you will engage with the wider AFKA community and let us walk with you on the journey ahead.
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