Introducing: Fostering Community

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Kristina Belcher is the Region 6A Service Program Administrator for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Harris County. With a background in psychology, social work, and business, Kristina has worked for DFPS for more than two decades, moving between several different roles and seeing various perspectives of the foster care system. There are approximately 4,600 kids in custody across all counties in Houston, the vast majority residing in Harris County. Listen to the full episode to hear Kristina explain various aspects of the state’s work with foster care, how families she works with have been affected by Covid-19, and how important it is for the city’s providers to work together with one another to ensure local families receive the right help throughout their journey. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Never in his life did Justin Sepulveda imagine that he would be running a nonprofit organization. Clutch City Connect launched this time last year, and just a few months ago officially became a 501c3 organization. But a little over 10 years ago, Justin had just gotten out of the Harris County Jail. His relationships were struggling, he had a little over $1 in his pocket, and he was hungry and homeless.That moment of service stayed with him over the next decade years as he worked to get back on his feet, and dealt with the pain of losing his brother to suicide. In an effort to stay positive and in good spirits, he turned to something he knew always brought him joy - helping others. What started as a hobby to get him through rough times eventually transformed into a full-fledged nonprofit that has served countless homeless and underprivileged people throughout the city of Houston. We know all too well that the foster care system feeds into homelessness (in fact, half of the nation’s homeless have spent time in foster care), which is something that Justin also started to realize as he swapped stories with the people he was meeting. Listen to the full episode to hear more about how Justin started and grew Clutch City Connect, how they collaborate with other missions and organizations, and his plans to get closer to the root of the problem - supporting the needs of our city’s at-risk youth. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Vanessa Agudelo is the owner of Houston Business Women, a local membership organization that connects women in business to networking, support and mentorship opportunities. Vanessa is not only a successful real estate agent, entrepreneur, and mother of two, but she is also a new friend and partner of Houston Angels. Listen to the full episode to hear us chat candidly about all of the things - how Vanessa created and built Houston Business Women, more about how we first connected and this September’s event, each of our visions for scaling, the need for storytelling and spreading the word about foster care, and how she and her husband feel called to support the local foster care community. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Savannah is a foster/adoptive mom of four beautiful children, who were all adopted through foster care. As young newlyweds, Savannah and her husband, Jacob, struggled with infertility, and the sadness and discouragement that came with it… but they didn’t feel like pursuing infertility treatments was the right path for them. At that time, they had both been volunteering at a Houston-based camp for kids who had been through trauma, a lot of whom had been in foster care. After getting to know these kids and listening to so many of their stories, Savannah and Jacob found it difficult to forget them, and felt God was drawing them towards foster care. After completing their classes and the long list of to-do’s that come with getting licensed, they were officially licensed to foster by Savannah’s 21st birthday. And within that same week, they already received their first placement, going from 0 to 3 children in a flash. They said goodbye to these children just five months later, and then quickly welcomed 4 more - including a newborn, an infant, and two toddlers (two children were siblings). Savannah’s plate was overflowing, as she juggled her husband’s challenging work schedule, 4 children under 4, new schedules, different sets of biological families to meet with, and different caseworkers and appointments for each child. After several years of fostering (and since this episode was recorded), all 4 children have been adopted into their forever home with Savannah and Jacob! Listen to Savannah share more of her journey, the beauty and pain that comes with parenting a child from hard places, and what anyone can do to support families like hers. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH 10 years ago, Susan was selling homes and working as a corporate trainer. Around this time, she sold a home to a woman who was a CPS worker, who invited her to a foster and adoption conference. Susan attended the conference and after hearing a judge tell a particularly impactful story of two boys who grew up in foster care, she leaves that conference feeling the weight of the world on her shoulders... she felt like God was telling her that creating change for foster care was now her burden to bear. So the next few years, she and her volunteer group would help to throw fun service events and provide extracurricular activities for children in foster care. But as great as they were, she realized they weren't life-changing. They needed to get to the root of the problem if they were going to truly prevent these kids from just ending up as another statistic. Susan spent the next 5-6 years building Austin Angels and piloting the Love Box Program, in which volunteers put together a "Love Box" of items tailored to a foster family's specific needs. But at the end of the day, it wasn't about the stuff - it was about the real, lasting bonds that were forming. It was about the lives being changed as a result of community, consistency, and intentionality. A few years later, Austin Angels' programs were successfully launched in Amarillo, TX. This eventually led to the creation of a national organization with chapters opening up in major cities like DFW, Cleveland, Seattle, and many more all across the country - including yours truly here in Houston. Listen to the full episode to hear Susan tell the judge's story that changed everything, more about her journey scaling the organization, and why she is so passionate about this mission. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Mireya spent several years in foster care as a teenager. At age 14, she was removed from her home. She and her 17-year-old sister stayed in an emergency shelter for a few weeks, and eventually they were placed with a foster family. Although there was an initial culture shock and awkwardness that came with joining a new family's ways and traditions, she has extremely fond memories of those years. She felt safe and loved in her foster home, and enjoyed being surrounded by supportive neighbors and church community. She talks about all of the contradicting emotions involved with foster care - feeling relieved to be safely removed from her parents' home, yet at the same time, pining for her parents and the familiarity of her old life. After a few years, she was eventually reunified with her bio family. Things were still not okay and as a result, her mental health began to decline. She finally moved in with her best friend, whose family played an important role in guiding her through early adulthood. Listen to the full episode to hear all about Mireya's journey, how these experiences have fueled her passion and life's work, and how she believes anyone in the local community can make a difference for a child in foster care. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Maggie and her husband, Caleb, were expecting their first child. Maggie was 9 months pregnant and one day out from being induced when they were involved in a horrific car accident - a head-on collision that ultimately took the life of their unborn daughter, Lucy Kate. After a long road of healing, grappling with this devastating loss, and exploring other options such as surrogacy, Maggie and Caleb decided to pursue foster care. In this episode, Maggie shares about her journey through recovery, becoming a foster parent, the ups and downs of foster care, and developing relationships with biological families. Since this episode was recorded, Maggie and Caleb have officially adopted their 3-year-old daughter, Treasure (who they first welcomed into their home at just 18 months old) and are currently fostering two siblings, ages 2 and 1. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

DONATE TO HOUSTON ANGELS IN HONOR OF NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH Amber Knowles is a mother of 4, including 2 adopted through foster care. Despite receiving the full support of family and friends throughout their foster and adoption journey, her family still experienced many challenges, often felt ill-equipped for the task, and were disappointed to see the confusion and lack of collaboration between well-meaning organizations in the city of Houston. These experiences led her to launch Fostering Family, a Houston-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to strengthening foster/kinship families and the communities that surround them through training and collaboration. One of the ways the organization accomplishes this is through their Babysitting Collaborative, which is a stream-lined, multi-agency certification course designed to make babysitting certification as painless as possible. Prior to starting Fostering Family, Amber worked as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, specializing in pediatric community health and school-based healthcare. She is a certified trainer in the Trauma Competent Caregiver (TCC) curriculum and was recently appointed Chair of the Provider’s Workgroup for the Coalition for Child Serving Sectors. Interview by: Melissa McGrath, President of Houston Angels | www.houangels.org Edited by: Hannah Gils | www.hannahgils.com

We believe in the power of community. We believe in relationships and connection. We believe in working together to create change. Fostering Community with Houston Angels is a community-wide effort to spread awareness about the challenges and triumphs within our local foster care system. We're bringing together industry experts, foster families and former foster youth, active volunteers, and leaders from similar organizations, to share each of their perspectives through short interviews. Let's work together to spread the word and foster MORE community for foster care.