Arms Wide Adoption Services to offer state-contracted foster care and foster-to-adopt services in DFPS Region 11, which serves the 19 southernmost counties in South Texas.
Arms Wide Adoption Services, a leading provider of foster care adoption, post adoption, and post permanency services in Region 11, announced the expansion of services to meet the need for foster care and foster-to-adopt services in the South Texas area. According to the Texas Department of Family Protective Services (DFPS), Region 11 is in need of another state-contracted agency to recruit and train foster parents willing to parent children aged zero to 10 with basic or moderate needs.
Arms Wide Adoption Services has provided services out of its South Texas office, located in Corpus Christi, since 2003. In addition to now providing foster care and foster-to-adopt services, the Corpus Christi office also provides high-quality, no-fee adoption, post adoption, and post permanency services to children and families in Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Cameron, Duval, Hidalgo, Jim Hogg, Jim Wells, Kenedy, Kleberg, Live Oak, McMullen, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Starr, Webb, Willacy, and Zapata counties.
“According to the DFPS 2019 Foster Care Needs Assessment, the Coastal Bend and surrounding areas only have 56% of the forecasted demand for foster families that is met by their current supply of foster families,” stated DeJuana S. Jernigan, President and CEO of Arms Wide Adoption Services. “Arms Wide Adoption Services is committed to partnering with DFPS to help fill this gap and create opportunities for children to be matched with foster families closer to their legal counties of residence, enabling children to maintain connections to their communities and achieve permanency more quickly.”
With a mission to transform the lives of children in need of safe and nurturing permanent families, Arms Wide Adoption Services knows the important difference their services can make in being able to serve more children in need in South Texas. Licensing foster parents gives children, who have experienced abuse, neglect, or abandonment, the opportunity to develop healthy emotional intimacy, trust, self-esteem and the ability to learn valuable life skills in a safe and nurturing environment.