Child Placement Agency

Foster Care & Permanency Planning Services

“It is very encouraging to see a strong community partner like City Ministries Child Placement Agency step up to get licensed and partner with the King County and DCYF to meet this very critical need-providing safe, nurturing homes for children in crisis.”

Kathy Lambert
King County Council Member, Dist 3

We believe every child is a blessing from God and children experiencing the foster care system need the love, safety and security of a permanent home and family.

THE NEED

Churchome  launched its own foster care agency to help meet the needs of children in the State of Washington and in particular King County.

Since 2020 in Washington State, over 7,500 children needed a safe place to stay…they needed a foster home. While some of these children went back home or to live with relatives, thousands remained in care.

Our mission is to see children experiencing the foster care system cared for in safe, loving, stable, faith-filled families focused on permanence and stability for the children

YOU CAN HELP BY

  • Opening your heart – pray for more foster parents, volunteers, and resources.

  • Opening your home – become a full or part time foster parent or respite provider.

  • Becoming an agency volunteer (childcare, tutoring, mentoring, etc.)

  • Giving financially of your resources or in-kind donations.

Kristy & Ernesto 

Foster parenting has brought joy and fulfillment to our family. The children we have had in our home have blessed us and in turn I pray we have been a blessing to them. One of the most unexpected benefits of fostering has been what our children have received. They have learned to be compassionate, kind and loving to children from all walks of life. We have found that being a foster family is a way that we can be God’s hands and feet in a practical way.

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Kennesha & Larry 

As a respite care family, we are able to provide a reprieve to full time foster parents when they need a break. There is significant impact on the collective perspective of our entire family when we serve the community together in this way. We also find tremendous satisfaction in seeing children find a place in our family’s culture in such short periods of time.

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Michelle 

I am blessed to be a respite care provider for the foster children, which means I have the children for a 48-hour time span once a month. My two daughters and I have hosted children as young as 9 months to 13 years of age; we’ve enjoyed some of these children only for 1 month and some for 2 years once a month.  These weekends soon became the highlight of our month much like having extended family coming for an overnight visit but only better because seeing the children once per month we are witness to Jesus’ healing and transformation in these children their lives and their hope restored that Jesus has a future for them as He holds them in the palm of His hand.

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Nicole & Brian 

It’s not always easy, but we wouldn’t trade the fostering experience for anything.  Seeing growth and positive change in the children that come into our home is rewarding.  Their resilience and spirit is inspiring!  And as we have welcomed these kids in their time of need, our family has grown and been blessed in ways we couldn’t have anticipated.

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Kate & Igor

Being aware of the need on the local scale, our family said yes to fostering. We welcomed children into our home providing them with a safe and stable environment. Just being there for them on a daily basis means the world to them. Many other foster parents would agree that fostering is a challenging journey but nevertheless a rewarding one.  A foster parent’s reward can be as big as having a child move up a reading level or as simple as a hug.  In our family we say that we only have good days and hard days, there are no bad days. Fostering affected us in ways we never expected. We thought that we would be the ones teaching our foster children when in reality we learn more than teach. Through fostering God is teaching us to be more patient, more forgiving and more accepting. God proved to us that when we answer His call, He is there to support and carry us through. While our primary focus is now on fostering, He provides and sends enormous blessing and prosperity in all the other aspects of our life. He is good and all glory goes to Him

CASE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT WITH CMCPA

City Ministries CPA is a faith based private agency that is able to provide one-on-one extensive case management for all of our foster families. Case managers are the first point of contact for state social workers or anyone affiliated with the case. We provide wraparound services for all foster families and children in our care to ensure the safety, longevity, and well-being of our foster parents.

These services include but are not limited to:

  • Serve as a liaison for foster parents and DCYF to access resources and resolves issues and concerns.
  • Available to provide support at all hours of the day, including crisis intervention.
  • A unified collaborative team that works to ensure the best case management for each child and family.
  • Advocate for the needs of foster families and children.
  • On staff MSW Case Manager with extensive experience to offer support, guidance, and resources.
  • Supervise visits with children and their biological parents upon social worker referral.
  • Provide on-time pass through payment of foster parent support $.

FOSTERING MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS 

Foster Parents Must:

  • Be at least twenty-one years old to apply.
  • Be shown to not have a disqualifying criminal history or founded history of child abuse and neglect.
  • Pass the state criminal background check.
  • Be able to prove regular source of income to meet your own family’s needs excluding current or future foster care payments.
  • Demonstrate you have the physical, mental and emotional stability suited to meet the needs of children in your care.
  • Complete both City Ministries and state application.
  • Complete Foster Parent Orientation and Caregiver Core Training.
  • Complete CPR/First Aid and Blood Borne Pathogen Training.
  • Complete CMCPA Recommended Trainings 
  • Be free from Tuberculosis (TB).
  • Pass the licensing home inspection.
  • Have a completed Home Study.

After the Licensing Process, Your Home Should at Least:

  • Be free from hazards.
  • Have all guns and ammunition locked separately.
  • Have a fire extinguisher (ABC).
  • Maintain a water temperature of no higher than 120 degrees.
  • Have medications, vitamins and poisons locked.
  • Have smoke detectors, including rooms that will be used for fostering.

Document:

You can make an incredible difference in the lives of vulnerable children in our community by volunteering your time and skills. CMCPA offers a wide range of volunteer opportunities for you to choose from and we would love to have you join our volunteer team! If you are interested in volunteering with us please e-mail info@citymin.org. You must be 21 years old to volunteer. 

We are currently looking for volunteers in the following areas:

Monthly

  • Monthly Children’s Activities: Help organize and lead fun activities for children in Rose Hill Cottages Community once a month. (Kirkland)

Weekly

  • Family Time Visitation Facilitator: Supervise visits between foster children and biological parents in community or office setting (King and Snohomish County Area)

One Time Events/ As Needed

  • Case Aide: provide support and services to foster families and case worker based on specific needs of children and families
  • Administrative Support: assist in the office with various projects and tasks including data entry, filing, helping prepare for an event, and inventory organization
  • Event Planning: help at community events including conferences, holiday children celebrations, trainings, and summer barbecue
  • Childcare: care for kids while families attend meetings, support groups, court hearings, and other events
  • Host a Fundraiser or Donation Drive: Give donations for Christmas Gifts, Child Welcome Baskets, and Child Transition Baskets
  • Creative Team:
    • Photographer- take photos at events
    • Marketing- social media content planning and posting

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” -Ephesians 2:10

STEPS TO VOLUNTEER:

  • Contact info@citymin.org to set up meeting with Volunteer Coordinator.
  • Face to face or phone meeting with Volunteer Coordinator.
  • Fill out application forms
  • Complete required trainings
  • Complete City Ministries’ Volunteer Orientation

City Ministries CPA is partnering with Olive Crest’s Host Families program to support families in crisis in our local community. The goal of this program is to keep children safe and families intact by having children at risk temporarily placed into safe, loving, and stable homes while their family receives resources and support to help them reach a place of stability to have children return to their care.

How it works:

Parents experiencing hardships and crisis can voluntarily ask for their child (age 0-18) to be placed in a host family while they address the issues that led them to the point of crisis (such as job loss, sudden health needs, and substance abuse.)

Children are placed in a host family local to them for a typical time frame of one day to three months. During this time in out of home care, biological families are encouraged to remain actively involved in the child’s life and build a positive relationship with the host family. Once the child’s family is in a healthy and stable place their children reunite with them.

Participating in this program is a great way to support vulnerable children and struggling families and play a role in preventing children from entering the foster care system.

If you are interested in learning more about Host Families, please reach out to us at info@citymin.org. We would love to provide you more information about this program!

Internship Program

City Ministries CPA offers internships for current college students who are passionate about our mission and are interested in gaining experience at a nonprofit organization.

CPA interns will work with the CPA team and gain experience in the following areas:

  • Gain understanding of the child welfare system and foster care licensing process.
  • Gain skills in assessing health and safety of children in care.
  • Engage and work with different systems pertaining to the child welfare system.
  • Gain an understanding in the court system pertaining to child welfare.
  • Job shadow and assist with Family Time visitation.
  • Opportunity to job shadow Case Managers and Licensor.
  • Receive hands on training pertaining to the child welfare system.
  • Gain knowledge of the WACs (Washington Advisory Codes).
  • Academic credit (to be determined by your university).

This is an unpaid internship that can be completed for academic credit if allowed and/or approved by the applicant’s college or university.

Please apply by e-mailing your cover letter and resume to CPA director Christie at christie@citymin.org

What is permanency planning?

Permanency planning is exploring all the child’s possible long-term options and the state and court system deciding which of those options are in the best interest of the child. These options include guardianship, foster care, kinship , adoption, or reunification – reunification being the highest priority.

Guardianship is when the court appoints someone to care for a minor. However, the child’s biological parents hold the right to terminate guardianship at any time. Guardianship will also terminate at the time that a child turns 18.

Foster care is when a licensed caregiver provides for a child under the supervision of the state. Placements can be temporary; however, it may proceed to adoption if that is decided to be the best option for the child. When a child in care is adopted, the parental rights of the biological parents are relinquished or terminated, and the caregiver is given those rights as decided by the court.

Kinship care is when a relative or suitable others are licensed to care for a child under the supervision of the state. Kinship care is a favorable option for the child as it maintains cultural and relational permanency, making it easier for a child to adjust to the changes experienced. As with foster care, kinship care also has the potential to proceed to adoption.

Reunification is when the biological parents have received the support and maintained a level of stability needed to have the child return home safely. If possible, this is the most favorable of options as it maintains the family unit and causes the least disruption for the child.

   Agency Phone Number: (425) 250-6759