Get Involved

Discover all of the ways you can support youth in foster care.

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Donate

When you help foster kids by donating to embrella, you give much more than money; you give them the chance to lead self-sufficient, productive and happy adult lives.
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Mentor

Mentors provide extra support, encouragement, friendship and guidance. They understand the concerns and daily challenges of being a resource, kinship, and/or adoptive parent.
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Share Your Story

embrella is the voice of foster, adoptive, and kinship families across New Jersey. Share your story with us!
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Be a Board Member

Help shape embrella's future by becoming a member of the board.
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Make a Change to Legislation

Contacting your State or Congressional Representative can feel overwhelming or scary. You may feel like your opinion doesn’t matter or that your voice won’t be heard. But this is exactly why YOUR voice is so important!

Decision makers need to hear the stories that affect the voters in their districts. Your stories help influence the way they vote on current legislation that will ultimately affect the way in which children in foster and kinship care will receive services.

There are many bills introduced into Congress and State Legislatures each year. We have outlined a current resolution relevant to the foster, kinship and adoptive community, how it would affect you and the children in your care, and how to get in touch with your representatives so they can hear your voice.

We will update this page with action alerts regularly, so keep checking in to see how you can Get Involved!

The Current Issue at Hand

Name of bill or resolution: S.Res. 398: A resolution designating September 2021 as “National Kinship Care Month”

What it means to you and the children in your care: In 1988, May was officially designated as National Foster Care Month to show appreciation and gratitude to foster parents, advocates, caseworkers, and the many individuals that strive to provide safe and loving homes for children and youth in need.

Since then, National Foster Care Month has gained recognition as a way for those involved in the foster community to be celebrated for their tireless efforts with the children they care for. National recognition also leads to increased visibility by the larger community as a whole, which assists in increased funding for services and programs.

How to Take Action

Passing a resolution that would designate September as National Kinship Care Month would help in gaining the same benefits for kinship families that have been created since the designation of National Foster Care Month.

What you can do to Get Involved: S. Res. 398 is currently pending before the Senate. You can take action by asking NJ Senator Cory Booker to vote in favor of this resolution. His vote will be needed to advance it. You can ask NJ Senator Robert “Bob” Menendez to cosponsor the resolution.

Visit https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/117/sres398/comment to see how you can connect with your senators. This site also offers tips on how to effectively communicate your story and ask for their support!

Shop and Support

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  1. Visit smile.amazon.com and sign into your Amazon account
  2. Select embrella as your charity
  3. Start shopping and support embrella

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Founded in 1972 and incorporated in 1974, embrella, formerly Foster and Adoptive Family Services, serves foster, adoptive and kinship parents in communities throughout NJ. We provide services, support and training opportunities for foster, adoptive and kinship families. We help foster children by offering programs to support them from childhood to young adulthood.