The goal of the Arms of Love Foster Care Program is to ensure that every child has a safe, loving, Christian home to reside in while they are unable to be in their own home.

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  Arizona Baptist Children's Services                                                          Volume 4       April, 2008

 

"And he took the children in his arms,

put his hands on them and blessed them." Mark 10:16

 

Peeps Sunflower Cake

- Karen Rohret

 

1 package yellow cake mix

1-2 cans chocolate frosting

19 yellow chick Peeps candies

1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips

Prepare and bake cake according to package directions, using two greased and waxed paper-lined 9 in. round baking pans.  Cool for 10 minutes before removing pans to wire racks to cool completely; carefully remove waxed paper.  Level tops of cakes.  Spread frosting between layers and over the top and sides of cake.  Without separating Peeps and curving slightly to fit, arrange chicks around edge of cake for sunflower petals.  For sunflower seeds, arrange chocolate chips in center of cake. 

*Recipe from Taste of Home magazine

 

A Note from Andrea

I recently attended an event where the speaker described the horrors of his childhood which include various types of abuse and an alcoholic and absent parent.  He then described how he met people that invested in him and introduced him to the love of Christ.  He described the amazing life change that it created in him even though it did not change the rest of his family or the background from which he came.  I couldn’t help but think as I heard his story how it mirrored the lives of our kids and the potential impact on the kingdom we are a part of by showing Christ’s love.  I left that night thanking God for each of you and the role that you play in this ministry.  I am so grateful for the opportunity we have been given to support you as you minister to our children.  Thank you for the love you show and your hearts to serve.   

 

 

Announcements:

*Visit us Online!

Check out our

New Web Site!

Visit www.abcs-tucson.org and click "Foster Care" and then "Current Foster Families" for updated information on upcoming events, trainings, and other helpful information.

*Need a Mentor? Interested in talking to another foster parent for advice and encouragement? Ask us about getting a mentor and we will match you with someone who can help you with your specific need.

*Share your Story

Interested in sharing an experience, story, word of encouragement, fun activity, recipe etc...in one of our e-newsletters? Please contact Ashley at ellingson@abcs-tucson.org.

 

*Suggestions

We would love to hear your comments and suggestions, please contact us with your feedback at 795-7541 or email your comments to: ellingson@abcs-tucson.org.

 

 

 

 

Meet Martha!     -Martha Escobar-Gil

 

Hi, my name is Martha Escobar-Gil.  I am the Administrative Assistant for the Foster Care Program here at ABCS.  I was born in the US, but raised in Mexico until the age of 9.  I speak English and Spanish.  I am the oldest of four.  I grew up in a home where everything happened around a kitchen table.  You learned about immediate and distant family members, you asked and received advice around the table, you discussed important things and silly things, and you got your scolding around the table, you listened to people and people listened to you.  You laughed, you cried and you learned.  Most of my fond memories are around a table, eating and talking with family and friends.  I love food . . . I love to eat, probably because of the nice familiar feelings I get when I’m sitting around a table. 

I am happily married to Philip (for almost 9 years) and have two six year old children (a daughter named Sasha and a son named Philip who we call little Phil).  I was a stay-at-home mom for about the first three years of my babies’ lives.  This was a time when God really began to minister to me like He never had before, through my children.  As a parent I began to clearly see how much the Lord loves me.  I began to understand the amazing love He has for His children.  Everything about us matters to Him.  One day, while I was washing dishes and feeling a little overwhelmed at home, I told God that I thought I would be a better wife and mother if I went back to work.  I was home 24/7, always on my feet, always doing something (cuz there is always something to do at home, right?), and I was driving my husband and my little ones crazy.  Some of you might relate and some might not, I’m just glad that everything about us matters to God.  Just then the phone rang and Julee Aros-Thornton (whom I had met around the time I met my husband Philip) asked me, “Hey Martha, have you ever thought of going back to work part-time?”  As they say, the rest is history.  I’ve been at ABCS for three years now and from day one I have felt that God brought me here to teach me and help me grow and mature in Him.  He ministers to me and teaches me and encourages me here.  I feel like the Lord is also ministering, teaching, and encouraging my husband and children through me.  Only God knows the plans He has for each one of us, but they are definitely plans to bless us and not harm us.  So, today, be confident of this, God is listening, and you don’t have to be around a kitchen table!

  

Favorite Dessert:

No favorites, I love many!

 

Favorite Color(s):

Red, Black, Blue, Green, White

 

Favorite Verse:

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

(Phil. 4:6-7)

 

Favorite Movie:

 I don’t have a favorite movie,

I have enjoyed many.

 

Favorite Meal:

Are you kidding me?  I love food period ;)

 

Favorite Starbucks Drink:

Hazelnut Skinny Latte

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mark Your Calendars

Training Day - Saturday, May 3rd

In collaboration with 5 other agencies we will be having a Foster Parent Appreciation Training Day!  The day will provide 6 hours of training, a catered box lunch, and the opportunity to spend time with other foster parents.  The time is set for 8am-3pm and it will be held at Christ Community Church on the eastside of Tucson.  Childcare will not be provided.  Look for upcoming details and an invitation coming to you soon.

Parents Night Out – Friday May 9th

This year for Foster Parent Appreciation Month we will be having a Parents Night Out!  On Friday May 9th from 6-9pm at Emmanuel Baptist we will provide child care and give you the evening off!  Look for an e-mail with more details coming soon!

 

 

    

Sports Grant

You may have heard a few months ago that we received a grant from Tucson Conquistadors to provide reimbursement for sports related fees and equipment for children in care. We applied for the grant because we know that this is usually an expense for which the state does not reimburse. We haven’t had the requests for reimbursements that we expected and so we wanted to send out a reminder to make sure that all our families knew that this was available. 

It doesn’t take a lot of work on your part; we just need a copy of a receipt. Expenses can include registration fees, uniform or equipment expenses or even things like prescription goggles if a child needs them for a particular sport.  The funding is restricted to foster children. At this point we don’t have a limit of reimbursement per family but may at some point depending on interest. We are able to reimburse for the later half of 2007 as well so if you still have receipts for fall sports those can be submitted. 

 

Devotion-Kathi Orr

"And He sat down, called the twelve and said to them, ‘If anyone desires to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.’  Then He took a little child and set him in the midst of them.  And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, ‘Whoever receives one of these little children in my name, receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives not Me, but Him who sent Me.”  Mark 9:35-37

When God planted the desire in your heart to pursue foster care He had plans for you, your family and the children He knew would be in your home.  I know that if you have had children placed in your home, there have been moments when you may have questioned just what those plans were and if you were really equipped to handle the challenges before you.  Have you ever stopped to think that Jesus says that by ministering to these children you are ministering to Him and to His Father?  That certainly can change our perspective!  As we model the love of Christ and patiently deal with the hearts and behaviors of our foster children, we often cannot see now what the lives of these children will be as they mature and become adults.  There are many famous people who spent part of their childhood in foster care, including Babe Ruth, NBA super star Alonzo Mourning, John Lennon and Charlotte Ayanna who was Miss Teen USA in 1993.You may be nurturing a future senator, youth pastor or missionary. 

Our heart’s desire and ministry goal is that each child in care through Arizona Baptist Children’s Services will experience the love of a Christian family and have the opportunity to come to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  Hebrews 13:2 reminds us, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing, some have unwittingly entertained angels.” 

Father, we want to be used by You.  Open our eyes and hearts to see the needs of each child placed in our care and equip us, moment by moment to respond with Your loving care and wisdom.  Amen

________________________________________________________________________________

My Family   - Paula Easley

I would like to tell you about our family.  My husband and I never really felt like babies was our thing.  After about 4 years of marriage God made it clear that we would have an adopted family.   So we kept our eyes and ears open.  Nine years after we felt the call to adopt, were led to buy a new home with much more room. 

It wasn’t a year later that we became licensed.  The day we got the license in the mail, the placement worker called us with a potential match.  We met and fell in love with our twins.  They were great kids and we felt we had this thing down. 

We felt there was another sibling group out there that would fit into our family.  As we talked with the kids’ therapist about taking in more kids, she knew of a group that had a failed placement and asked if we might be interested.  We had a visit with them and decided to pursue the placement.  These kids were also great.  As it goes with children who have been in the system, these three had some difficult things to work through. 

One of the benefits of taking in a sibling group is that they have a built in support system.  They have someone who understands what they have come from.  When they are unsure of the situation there is someone who they can trust to comfort them.  This is especially true in the first months of placement.

God has a great sense of humor.  Fortunately, He is compassionate and does not give us more that we can handle if we look to Him for strength and wisdom.  Are there days we think we should have stopped after the twins?  Yes.  By taking in the second sibling group God has fulfilled a calling on our lives that couldn’t have happened if we had backed away at the first signs if struggle.  And these callings are not just with our children, but careers and other life pursuits. 

 

-Paula Easley

 

Training

 

Casa De Los Ninos

Training Series for Foster Parents

RSVP to Chuck Chiverton at 624-5600 ext. 322

1101 N. 4th Ave. Main Conference Room

6:00-9:00p.m.

3 Credit Hours of Training

____________________________________________________

 

Emotional Adjustment for Children in Out of Home Placement

April 24th

 

Attachment and Secure Base Problems/Disorders for Children in Out of Home Placements

May 22nd

 

Mental Health Problems for Young Children

June 19th

 

Children Exposed to Neglect, Abuse and Violence

July 24th

 

 

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