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A Summer Like No Other
Greetings! We are happy to announce our Summer Fun Day, happening Friday, Aug. 7. Also in this issue, you'll find links to virtual summer camps. We profile Danelle Stiffler of Spaulding for Children and her amazing mother, Jamie Stiffler. We detail the new Spaulding Cares Online Tutoring Program. Below are two important "Save the Date" reminders. We have news about our new strategic planning committee and the course ahead. Plus, QIC-AG has made available new Implementation Manuals for professionals and more.
Summer Fun for Kids & Families 
Here’s the scoop on the Ice Cream Social: While we won’t see each other at the waterpark this summer, we will get to enjoy time together in our minds and in our hearts – and in a very real way.
 
One of our favorite family events of the year, the Ice Cream Social has been a great way for parents to meet or reconnect while the kids splash around and have fun. The day is usually filled with smiles and squeals of delight.
 
Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, it would not be safe to try and hold this event in person this year.  We decided to provide Spaulding families with all the essentials to have a special day this summer from the comfort of their own home.

Spaulding families can join Spaulding staff and volunteers virtually while all enjoy the events at the same time. There will be raffles throughout the day for families to win prizes. We also hope to show how each and every member of the Spaulding community is truly appreciated.
 
The new Spaulding Summer Fun Day happens Friday, Aug. 7, from 9 am until 7 pm. While it doesn’t replace the Ice Cream Social, the new Spaulding Summer Fun Day will provide goodies, games, and great activities for Spaulding families – all the essentials needed for an extraordinary day filled with joy and unforgettable memories tucked in a beautiful beach bag.

Spaulding families can pick up their Summer Fun Day bags at Spaulding on Saturday, Aug. 1 from 12 noon until 3 pm. Ice cream will be served, donated by Mutual of America!
 
Please Join Us for Spaulding Summer Fun
 
Please help us put big smiles on the faces of Spaulding families participating in Spaulding Summer Fun Day. We are requesting donations to help fill event gift baskets created exclusively for Spaulding families. 

You can shop our list at Target (click here) or our list at Amazon (click here).

We are requesting donations be delivered to us by Monday, July 27. You can have them mailed directly to our office from your online order or you can drop them off in-person (ring the doorbell). Our address is:
 
Spaulding for Children
16250 Northland Drive, Suite 100
Southfield, MI 48075
 
While we can’t get together in-person this year, thanks to you and all the people of Team Spaulding, we still get to enjoy each other’s company online August 7 and carry that kindness in real life throughout the rest of the year.
Summer Camps, 2020 Style
Kids can get engaged, learn about their favorite subject, and have truly big fun in virtual and in-person summer camps. Subjects include writing workshops; music, drama and the arts; Spanish language, math, science and academic programs; outdoor exploration and more.

Click here to learn more and to register.
We are always looking for fun ways for our families to enjoy the summer months. Please check Spaulding’s Facebook page  as we add events often. You also can see how our SFC staff are having fun these days.
Celebrating 10 Years at Spaulding for Children
Danelle Stiffler
Danelle is one of two Wendy's Wonderful Kids Adoption Recruiters at Spaulding, one of three in Michigan. She's pictured above with her mom, Jamie Stiffler.
Danelle Stiffler started at Spaulding for Children as an intern working with Wendy’s’ Wonderful Kids in her senior year at Wayne State University. After earning her BA in Social Work, Danelle was offered a full-time position in Spaulding as a foster care worker. Today she speaks to prospective interns for SFC and to college students considering a career in foster and adoption. 
 
“The work can take a toll on many emotionally,” Ms. Stiffler said. “You have to have mental stamina to be successful. I remind myself that at the end of the day I am making a difference in someone’s life.”
 
Ms. Stiffler serves as one of two Wendy’s Wonderful Kids Adoption Recruiters at Spaulding – one of three in Michigan. She serves nearly two dozen young people who live across the state and who look forward to Ms. Stiffler’s monthly visit. An active part of their lives, Danelle often attends dance recitals, sporting events, and many school activities.
 
Ms. Stiffler said she had dedicated her career to the well-being of children, serving in preschool as a teacher and in day care as a developmental specialist. Danelle also was drawn to foster care and adoption as she learned at an early age that she would not have children. She calls all the young people she recruits for, “My kids.”
 
“My passion comes from the connections I have with the children I serve,” Ms. Stiffler said. “They know they are more than a case.”
 
The call to care for others started at home, Ms. Stiffler said. The youngest of her siblings, she grew up watching everyone stepping up when one person needed help. Danelle’s aunt fostered children for 35 years and her mom was also lending a hand (see "Jamie Stiffler: Family Action" story below). 
 
Danelle brings her passion, empathy and can-do spirit to Spaulding every day and often to her family and friends, too. In return, her family members, friends, aunts, and uncles are always asking what can they do to support the children and families Spaulding serves?
 
“My aunt and friends buy items from our Amazon list or help with an event,” Ms. Stiffler said. “They know my passion for all these kids, and they know that if you can, 'you do' – you do something. The Stiffler family does what they can.”
 
Wendy’s Wonderful Kids is a grant-based program where Spaulding’s adoption professionals implement proactive, child-focused recruitment programs targeted exclusively on moving America’s longest-waiting children from foster care into adoptive families.
 
The children served by the Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program are typically those who have been waiting the longest for an adoptive family and home. By the time they are referred to a Wendy’s Wonderful Kids recruiter, nearly 70% are older than age 8, 30% have had six or more placements, and 50% have been in foster care more than four years. Some have never had a plan of adoption and have simply been on a track to age out of foster care at age 18 or 21, without the security and love of a permanent family.
 
Click here to learn more about Wendy's Wonderful Kids

Jamie Stiffler: Family Action 


When Danelle Stiffler talks about her “kids,” her passion comes through, loud and clear. Her mother, Jamie Stiffler, understands where the special energy comes from.
 
Mrs. Stiffler hears the stories about kids without a permanent home and asks, “What can I do?” After hearing about plans for a Christmas holiday party, Mrs. Stiffler offered to provide stockings for all the children. So she enlisted her Women’s Auxiliary of Fraternal Order of Eagles to help.
 
Soon, more than 40 Christmas stockings were delivered, filled to the brim with candies, gift cards, ornaments, paper and pencils, plus “fun things.” Of course, Mrs. Stiffener doesn’t stop with Christmas, but enlists friends to host a fundraiser of their own -- or directs people who want to help to the Amazon Wish List.

 
“When Danelle tells me some of these kids are 16 and still waiting for a family, my heart breaks,” Mrs. Stiffler said. “My sister-in-law will call when she’s out shopping and say, ‘I see clothing or a game,’ and asks, ‘Is this something for the Spaulding kids?’ We always say, ‘Yes, it’s perfect. We will take it.’”
How You Can Help
A few suggestions for those who want to help children in need:
•            Amazon List
•            Ask a business you patronize to host a fundraiser
•            Link your Amazon Account to support Spaulding
Introducing...
The Spaulding Caring Community Online Tutoring Program
This summer we launched a new tutoring program to assist those experiencing remote and online learning, Spaulding Caring Community Online Tutoring Program.
 
The new program started in June when volunteers began tutoring in a variety of subjects including art, reading, grammar, history, math, music and science.  The volunteers and learners also have found time to play games and share in fun online.
 
Created and staffed by volunteers, the online tutoring program is helping students meet the new challenges posed by online learning. Many students are learning via computer for the first time. The tutoring program is available to youth of all ages.
 
Presently 17 volunteer tutors are active tutoring 20 children in foster care. The tutors include middle and high school students who wanted to play a role in helping others during COVID.
 
The Spaulding Caring Community Online Tutoring Program was funded through a grant from UPS called, “Caring Community Volunteer Program.”
 
As part of the UPS Spaulding Cares Community Volunteer grant, Spaulding has trained 25 middle and high school youths who live in Florida, to tutor youth in the foster care system in Michigan via Zoom, Facebook Live and other online face-to-face virtual forums.
 
Volunteers were recruited by Maya Lis. Her mother, Melinda Lis, serves as Vice President of the Academy at Spaulding. The family lives in Florida. Readers may remember Maya as the young woman who created online yoga classes earlier this year. 
Save the Date: July 30
Raising Black Boys - A Webinar
On July 30, The Cradle will present a webinar to promote honest and open dialogue about the realities of raising a Black boy in today’s world.
 
A panel comprised of African Americans will discuss the conversations they are having with their sons around the Black Lives Matter movement and protests happening around the world. Panelists will share how they explain the incidents of violence and racial tension in the news each day and how these conversations shape our young boys as they transition to adulthood.
 
Dr. Kimberly N. Jackson, Author and Middle School Principal, will lead the discussion. The panelists also include Mr. Evan J. Roberts, Educator and Children's Book Author; Mr. Robert Griggs, Host of The Supa Dupa Podcast; and Mr. Andale Gross, Race and Ethnicity News Editor, Associated Press.
 
The Raising Black Boys Webinar happens Thursday, July 30, beginning at 8 p.m. EST. Cost of the webinar is $25. To register, click here. The program is the first in a series of webinars hosted by The Cradle taking place over the next six months.
Save the Date: August 26
Transracial Adoption and the Black Lives Matter Movement - A Webinar
Spaulding for Children will present a webinar: “Transracial Adoption and the Black Lives Matter Movement” on Wednesday, Aug. 26. Led by April Dinwoodie, a consultant at Spaulding, a three-member panel will discuss their own transracial adoption experiences. We will post complete details when available on Spaulding’s home page, Facebook page and other spaces. We also will publish an interview on the program with Ms. Dinwoodie in Spaulding’s August newsletter.  This webinar will be facilitated by Dr. Sharonlyn Harrison.
SFC Preparing New Strategic Plan
To meet the needs of children and families for 2021 and beyond, Spaulding for Children has formed a new strategic planning committee. The 14-member group is comprised of foster and adoptive parents, board and staff members, and foster youth alumni.

Charged with identifying goals and choosing strategies, the committee will analyze and discuss internal and external factors and trends most likely to influence the direction of child welfare services in the coming years. The panel’s recommendations will help shape Spaulding programs, services and capabilities.
 
The committee is tasked with creating a strategic plan, scheduled to be submitted for Board approval at the end of September. The plan will have a one-year scope, yet offers a 3- to 5-year vision.
 
As part of its work, the committee will evaluate the results of a survey to Spaulding stakeholders compiled by Judy Muhn, a strategic planning consultant from NEW. Results of the survey will be shared in the August newsletter.
Now Available from QIC-AG
New Implementation Manuals
Following five years of robust implementation and evaluation, the National Quality Improvement Center for Adoption and Guardianship Support and Preservation (QIC-AG) has released seven comprehensive Implementation Manuals
 
Each manual provides a detailed roadmap for using a structured process to:
  1. determine if an intervention is the “right” intervention for your site, and
  2. support the intervention with integrity. 
Each manual also contains practical considerations for implementation as well as lessons learned from the QIC-AG pilot sites. These include:
  • Illinois – Trauma Affect Regulation: Guide for Education and Therapy (TARGET)
  •  New Jersey – Tuning into Teens (TINT)
  •  Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska – Family Group Decision Making (FGDM)
  •  Tennessee – Neurosequentiual Model of Therapeutics (NMT)
  •  Texas – Pathways to Permanency 2
  •  Wisconsin – Adoption Guardianship Enhanced Support (AGES)
  •  Vermont – Permanency Survey
 With evidence of an ever-changing world all around us, and with child welfare systems required to constantly adapt, expand, and upgrade, the QIC-AG Implementation Manuals can be useful tools as professionals build services and support for today’s adoptive and guardianship families.
 
Available now at QIC-AG, click here to access the manuals
More from QIC-AG
Informative Podcasts for Professionals
These conversations with national experts cover a range of topics, including how to support families who provide permanence; empowering families to seek support; how to respond to families’ unique service needs and more.

Click here for QIC-AG podcasts.


Change a child's life, become a foster parent!


Click to learn more.

 

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