Foster Care at Mt. Bethel

The Mt. Bethel Foster Care Ministry and Cornerstone Family Services celebrated one year of service on June 8. Thanks to the support and encouragement of the Mt Bethel Missions Committee, Administrative Board, and many friends, the Foster Care Ministry has made a profound difference in the lives of thirty five Cobb County foster children. Also during this year, four additional churches in the area have begun Foster Care Ministries modeled after the Mt Bethel ministry.

Through the compassionate response of almost twenty families who have hosted children in their homes, these thirty five children have experienced living in a loving, compassionate, nurturing family environment. They have experienced Mt Bethel Sunday School lessons and nursery; Mt Bethel athletics and music programs; Mt Bethel generosity and support; and most importantly they have experienced the grace of God through Mt Bethel families.

Even though these children have experienced the compassion of Mt Bethel members, over 250 additional children needed foster homes during this same time…..and we had no homes to accommodate them. As members of Mt Bethel, you have the ability and opportunity to help solve a very serious problem with the foster care system in Georgia….not enough foster homes. In Cobb County alone, there are over 500 foster children and only 100 foster homes. Your home and family could be one of those loving, nurturing and compassionate homes that make a profound difference in the lives and destinies of these children in need.

Through a partnership with Cornerstone Family Services, the Foster Care Ministry recruits and trains foster parents, places foster children in foster homes, and supports foster families in their mission endeavor. The rewards for fostering are enormous and lasting, for both the foster child and the family. You too could make a profound difference in the lives and destinies of Cobb County children.

Call Wayne Stolz at 770-565-7521, or send a note to westolz@bellsouth.net for more information about becoming a foster parent.

May is Foster Care Month

Georgia has over 13,000 foster children - some fortunate to have loving foster parents and some older youth residing in foster group homes.  If statistics remain the same, only 2000 of these children will graduate from high school.  The result of that is generational foster care and poverty.

These least & lost are in need of caring adults to offer support & guidance.  The difference an adult can make helps create responsible citizens and strong families.  Cornerstone Ministries has a need for foster parents and Opportunity Knocks for Youth has a need for mentors and other volunteers to offer work experiences.  Mentoring a teenage youth requires only 4-5 hours a month while the rewards will be so much greater. A weekly contact with a teen, who may believe that no one cares, is powerful & meaningful.

As Jesus said to Peter, “if you love me, then feed my sheep“.

If you have the heart to help, please call Bill Spell, Board Chair - Volunteers, at 404/245-2274, or Dale Champion, Director, at 678/641-1968.

Seventeen Foster Families

In June, Mt Bethel’s Foster Care Ministry will be one year old.  Seventeen families have been trained and are serving as foster parents; and 35 children have spent time in the homes of these foster parents.  Mt Bethel families, by turning their Compassion into Action, have significantly changed the lives and destinies of these children.

The Mt. Bethel Foster Care Ministry has the mission to recruit, train, and support foster families.  Through our partnership with Cornerstone Family Services, a Christian foster family ministry, families will receive all necessary training, and ongoing support and supervision as they host foster children in their homes.

If you are interested in learning more about this important mission and how you may participate in our foster care ministry, please attend an informational meeting on Saturday June 14, from 9:30 am until noon at Mt. Bethel. For questions or to reserve a spot at the Orientation meeting, please call Wayne Stolz, a Mt. Bethel Foster Care Ministry volunteer at 770-565-7521, or send a note to westolz@bellsouth.net.