Foster Care Chronicles: Wrongs of Passage premiers at NC Triad Stage’s Upstage Cabaret

UNCG’s Department of Social Work presents Debra LeWinter’s production crafted from the stories of the performers’ real experiences in Foster Care, April 14-24. 

“I come from a place where I was told wrong was right.“

“Foster Care Chronicles: Wrongs of Passage” Description

The goal of the “Foster Care Chronicles: Wrongs of Passage,” written and directed by Debra LeWinter, funded by the HRSA Behavioral Health Training Grant through the Department of Social Work at UNCG, is to help people in the Foster Care System create and perform a production based on their first person accounts. Regional youth aged 15-25 who are or were in Foster Care share their experiences through acting, music, and dance. The participants transform themselves and the future of our community as they teach others what it is like to walk in the shoes of a “Foster Kid.”

What goes into this project?

Youth chosen for this project share their individual experiences with other youth in foster care, a licensed social work therapist, three Masters of Social Work student interns, and a professional playwright. They will participate in two outdoor retreats to connect with each other and become a team. The playwright will then meld the incredible stories of the youth in foster care into a script and mount a full-scale production, Foster Care Chronicles: Wrongs of Passage. Professional set, sound and lighting designers, and a choreographer will help the youth bring their stories to life on stage. The youth’s eight performance run begins on April 14, 2016.

To Purchase tickets CLICK HERE

About the Play’s Author:
Debra LeWinter is a local expressive arts practitioner, playwright, director, and educator. She holds a Bachelor’s in Psychology from Bryn Mawr College and a Masters in Theater Education from UNCG. As the child of a Holocaust survivor, Debra grew up hearing the stories of her mother and her mother’s peers; she learned the power of individual stories to spark empathy and inspire action.

Update on the Adoption Tax Credit Refundability Act!

The Executive Committee has been meeting with congressional staff over the last few months about the importance of protecting the adoption tax credit (ATC) and making it refundable. We have collectively made GREAT progress on the bipartisan Adoption Tax Credit Refundability Act (S. 950/H.R. 2434), but we still have work to do before congressional recess in July. That will be our last chance to advance the ATC bill this Congress!

There are 14 new cosponsors of H.R. 2434! Your phone calls and emails lead to more cosponsors of the ATC bill, which increases the likelihood that the bill will be considered.

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) announced a new Task Force on Tax Reform with the principle of limiting “credits that riddle the tax code.” We understand there is bipartisan interest in simplifying the tax code, but we know that the ATC makes adoption a more viable option for many children and families. Please keep the ATC from being eliminated in any tax reform efforts by:

1. Asking the House Ways & Means Committee to consider H.R. 2434 before recess in July

2. Asking your Members of Congress to cosponsor S. 950/H.R. 2434

3. Asking your colleagues to join our 151-member-strong cause by emailing taylor@ccainstitute.org

4. Liking the ATC on Facebook, following us on Twitter, and spreading the word!

Let’s keep up the momentum of strengthening families through the ATC!

Warm Regards,  

The ATC Working Group Executive Committee

American Academy of Adoption Attorneys
Adopt America Network
Christian Alliance for Orphans
Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (Secretariat)
Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption
Donaldson Adoption Institute
National Council for Adoption
North American Council on Adoptable Children
RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association
ShowHope
Voice for Adoption

So, What Can You Do? You Can Give This A Share.

Source: linkedin.com 

By Douglas Riggle 

To share this blog on Facebook, click here.

Fewer adoptive parents (and you have a homework assignment in this blog)

Every story regarding adoption and foster care seem to be sensationalized in the news. That's what sells. "Tune in at 11 to learn why your adopted child may one day murder you in your sleep."

Ok... I'm exaggerating. But not by much.

Yet the rate of adoption here in the United States has been on a decline. We hit a peak around 2004 with almost 23,000 adoptions taking place in the United States but that annual rate has been on the decline ever since. In 2009, the number of adoptions in the US have fallen to about 12,700. That's a staggering decline.
News stories about a woman who returned her child to Russia blanketed the news for a while and everyone judged her actions as harsh and unloving -- but then fear creeps in. 

What if I try to adopt and the child I get turns out to be hell on wheels?

Trust me, they don't have to be adopted to be "hell on wheels." While I don't think we should outright ignore the stories in the media ... think of them as a cautionary tale.

So what should be our response to the declining numbers of children being adopted? One word: 

ADOPT!

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American Friends of Georgia's Most Successful Gala!

AFG Hosts Most Successful Gala Ever in Tbilisi

Our Gala raised $111,300 after expenses, which included an additional pledge of $41,000 by Ivane Nakaidze, founder and managing partner of Petrocas Energy Group and Patron of our Gala in Tbilisi. Our goal was to raise funds for two specific projects--the Dzegvi Community Building Fund and the Hospice Home Care Program--and to restore the tradition of philanthropy in Georgia.

 Painting by Levan Lagidze donated by Board Members Ambassador and Mrs. Richard Miles, Auctioneer Extraordinaire & Managing Director of Pricewaterhouse Coopers Cliff Isaak, AFG Executive Director/Georgia Lena Kiladze and volunteer Keti Sidamonidze  

Learn more....  

Video highlights from the Tbilisi December 12, 2015 Fundraising Gala  

View the the entire Gala video
 

The Dzegvi Community Building Fund

 

The Gala began our year-long campaign to raise enough funds for the renovation of a former orphanage building, which is part of a complex of buildings housing 78 residents who are mentally ill adults, physically handicapped adults, and abandoned single mothers with their children. This transformed building will become a community center with vocational training, workshops, and rooms for residents.

 

Children in the building needing renovation at Dzegvi Community Shelter, photo by Nella Rasic

 Learn More...

Click here to view film: Dzegvi Community Shelter and Hospice Home Care Program Film  
Photos made by David Khizanishvili, Editing by David Khizanishvili and Kate Kalandarishvili
 

The Hospice Home Care Program

 

Founded by Abbess Mariam, the Hospice Home Care Program brings much needed nursing care and comfort to elderly and seriously ill Georgians in their homes. Our year-long campaign seeks to help Abbess Mariam expand the homecare program to reach additional unserved Georgians who are desperately poor and sick or alone without care.

 Marusya Chavchavadze and Abbess Mariam at work visiting a Home Care patient, photo by Nella Rasic  

Learn more...

Parenting Kids with Prenatal Alcohol and Drug Exposure

Host Dawn Davenport, Executive Director of Creating a Family, the national infertility & adoption education and support nonprofit, interviews a panel of adoptive moms who are raising children who were exposed in pregnancy to alcohol or drugs.
Listen to Show

When Did You Become Someone’s Daughter Through Adoption?

“I’ll start.  My Dad adopted me when I was 4 years old.  On that most special occasion, I got a new sister and brother, too!  I happen to think my Mom chose a pretty special man to be my Forever Dad!” 
–Robin

Hopscotch Extends Our Deepest Condolences to the Quesenberry Family

Posted with permission of Natalie Hampton Quesenberry

For those that may not have heard through the adoption community, a wonderful Hopscotch family lost a devoted husband and father while in Bulgaria recently.  What should have been a joyous trip to bring home two very sweet boys they longed for, the unthinkable happened in Eric’s sudden passing.  The family was left without life insurance or a will and are struggling to provide the much needed stability to a newly transformed and vulnerable family.  Natalie, Eric’s wife of 24 years, is now navigating the infinitely complicated process of managing Eric’s estate, getting through the day to day life with two additional new children with special needs and planning Eric’s memorial and burial service – all while in the depths of grief.  Please keep this family in your thoughts and prayers as they grieve and find a new normal for their family.  In the event you feel led to support them further, you can do so at YouCaring.com

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Do you know someone considering adoption? Share this Free Multimedia Guide on Choosing an Adoption Agency or Attorney

Do you know someone considering adoption? One of the first things they need to do is choose an adoption agency or attorney. Let them know about our FREE Multimedia Guide on Choosing an Adoption Agency or Attorney. We walk you through the process from soup to nuts and provide plenty of resources to make this process as easy as possible.

Parent to Parent: Addressing Trauma-Based Behaviors to Promote Attachment

Debbie Schugg, Kinship Center, Adoptive Parent
(LIVE) Thursday, March 17, 2016 @ 1:00pm- 2:30pm EST
Extended Access: March 18 -23, 2016

Debbie Schugg will discuss how approaching frustrating behaviors with curiosity and compassion can lead to better outcomes, greater healing, and more peace in the home. She will share strategies for interpreting behaviors, identifying the unmet needs which drive them, prioritizing the parent-child relationship, and recognizing the role of self-care in being emotionally present with our children. 

Thanks to Jockey Being Family, Jockey International the first 300 registrants can receive free registration when using coupon code ATTACH at checkout. 

Click here to register.

To Be Someone's Daughter, Its Never Too Late.

Click here to see video.