The Texas Bar Foundation recently awarded Child Advocates of Fort Bend (CAFB) a $5,000 grant to support the agency’s Positive Parenting Project to address the advocacy needs of babies and toddlers. Children ages 5 and under are among the most vulnerable victims of child abuse and represent the largest age cohort served by CAFB’s Court Appointed Special Advocates Program: 125 infants and toddlers served as of November 12. As new children enter Texas Foster Care daily, the most basic needs for care and safety are in high demand and so are the needs pressed upon the networks of child welfare, judicial, law enforcement and other systems.
“The greatest needs are to prevent abused and neglected children from falling through the cracks of any system, to advocate for their best interests in court and reduce their chances of returning to the system,” stated Child Advocates of Fort Bend CEO Ruthanne Mefford. “A short-term goal is to continue to serve 100% of abused and neglected children ages 5 and under to ensure their safety and permanency. New program enhancements will help children reunite with family or identify and connect with previously unknown family members when possible using Collaborative Family Engagement (CFE) and CAFB-sponsored Family Reunification Celebrations.”
Since its inception in 1965, the Texas Bar Foundation has awarded more than $19 million in grants to law-related programs. Supported by members of the State Bar of Texas, the Texas Bar Foundation is the nation’s largest charitably-funded bar foundation.
Child Advocates of Fort Bend is the only agency in Fort Bend County exclusively dedicated to providing critical services, all free of charge, to abused and neglected children and their non-offending family members. For 27 years, CAFB has provided a voice, healed the hurt and broken the cycle of abuse and neglect in Fort Bend County. Through its Court Appointed Special Advocates Program (CASATM), Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) and more than 200 trained advocates, CAFB has served more than 15,500 children since opening its doors in 1991. New Volunteer Advocates are continuously needed to help sustain its programs. For more information about CAFB, or to learn how to volunteer, visit www.cafb.org or contact Lindsey Castellanos at lcastellanos@cafb.org or 281-344-5259.