 In my twelve years of working in nonprofits, I've noticed one big difference between lackluster programs and energetic, life-giving work: the freedom for employees to bring their whole life experience and creativity to work.
Each of my colleagues at Project 1.27 is brilliant, with their mixture of professional programming sprinkled with grassroots magic. I see my colleagues using their gifts, developed in the tears and joys of their own home lives, to enhance their roles here at P127. That personal wisdom is one of the keys to ensuring every child we serve has a nurturing, well-supported home. Jackie, my counterpart and Matching Manager in the Neighbor Program is a foster and adoptive mom. After three years of faithfulness as foster parents, a foster care agency asked Jackie and her husband Ryan to mentor other families through a monthly support group. Now five years into leading the group, they've held the hands of dozens of parents through heartbreak, isolation, and joy. They can personally attest to the long road of foster care and encourage others to stay the course. Jackie spoke at our Colorado Springs story slam this fall, sharing her own story as a child in kinship care. This personal knowledge allows her to train volunteers in the sensitive nature of entering a kinship or foster home to deliver a monthly meal, respecting the child's story and the caregiver's need to feel cared for. Alex is our Director of Community Engagement, author of five books, and keynote speaker for thousands of audience members. She started her career in a home for teens without a place to go. I watched her take the stage at a local church this winter to share her keynote, "Loving My Actual Christmas." After sharing practical tips on managing the expectations and stresses of the holidays in 21st-century America, Alex invited the audience to step out of their social circle and become a Neighbor or attend foster parent training. From Alex's blending of her pre-Project 1.27 speaking skills and her drive to fill our program with quality volunteers, twelve people expressed interest, and four are already in the process of taking monthly meals to a kinship or foster family. Lisa, our Director on the Western Slope, has a full house of teens and elementary kids. Thanks to her lengthy commitment to fostering 96+ children, she trains foster parents in Mesa County, explaining that while this is not easy, it is worth it. Her hard-won wisdom lets parents and future foster parents know that when they feel like everything is going wrong, they can keep showing up faithfully. Along with her husband, who serves as a CO Responder with Mesa County Behavioral Health (assisting the Sheriff), Lisa sought (and received!) funding to lead connection groups between kinship families--often grandparents or older siblings--with others who are unexpectedly caring for their relative's children. Together, they hosted an advanced training on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, a common diagnosis in their local community. I'm proud of my colleagues. They put their hearts into this work because they've lived it themselves. They see the needs daily in their own home and want every child to get the personal attention, love, and heartfelt effort they give their kids. Families in Colorado are more nurtured and well-supported because Team 1.27 brings both lived and professional experience to our programs. By Hope Forti, Neighbor Program Founder & Director
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 When Janelle and Joe Fuentes married, they shared a vision: foster care or adoption would be part of their family's story. Joe's family had adopted domestically, and Janelle's parents had experience as foster and adoptive parents. This shared legacy of nurturing children in need was woven into their family DNA. However, the couple didn't know how, when, or where their journey would unfold.
In 2013, the Fuentes family, which now included two biological children, answered the call from God and began their journey to becoming foster parents. Their first step was to complete training through Project 1.27 before becoming licensed. Their commitment led them to foster three children, adopting two of them. After this, they decided to close their foster license, believing their family was complete. The Need for Support Throughout their time as foster parents, Janelle and Joe discovered the importance of robust support systems. They attended various support groups but struggled to find one that felt like the right fit. Recognizing this gap, they approached their pastor, Dan Freng, who was also a foster and adoptive parent through Project 1.27. One that, above all, encouraged parents with the gospel and pointed them to Jesus as their source of strength and the ONE who can equip them for this challenging calling! Building Tapestry Ministry The Fuentes family's vision for their ministry extended beyond just providing a space to vent frustrations. They aimed to create an informative, supportive, and growth-oriented group. To ensure their meetings met the requirements for foster parents to earn training hours, Janelle collaborated with several county Child Protective Services (CPS) agencies. In 2017, the Tapestry Ministry at Calvary Littleton was born. In a testament to their commitment, the first meeting was held the day after the Fuentes family received a new placement. We know how chaotic those first few days with a placement can be. Since its inception, the Tapestry Ministry has faithfully met one Friday night each month from 6:00 to 8:00 PM for seven years, including meeting via Zoom during the COVID-19 pandemic. Each meeting begins with a family dinner, where children and parents dine together. Afterward, Janelle and Joe provide free childcare, enabling parents to participate in uninterrupted group time. The structured group sessions often feature guest speakers covering parenting, marriage, and trauma. At other times, they engage in book studies. Meetings typically conclude with a prayer time where families can pray for one another, fostering a sense of support. The Fuentes family found that maintaining a focus for each meeting was crucial to the group's success. While occasional casual catch-up sessions are valuable, too many unstructured meetings hinder the group's growth and purpose. Janelle shared her insights on establishing a successful foster and adoptive support group:
Looking Ahead The Tapestry Ministry has become a beacon of support for foster and adoptive families in their community. By blending practical resources with spiritual nourishment, Janelle and Joe Fuentes have created a thriving group that embodies their commitment to fostering and adoption. Their journey reminds us that faith, intentionality, and teamwork make it possible to create lasting change and a sense of belonging for families navigating the challenges of fostering and adoption. If your church wants more information about starting a Foster or Adoptive support group, please contact Kym Schnittker at [email protected]. Kym Schnittker, Community Engagement and Events Manager  In 2023, as Emily and Shane McDaniel said goodbye to the two children placed with them, they felt a growing discouragement. The couple stepped into foster care with a passion to serve children in foster care AND their biological parents. After serving 15 children, that hadn’t happened. Instead, they felt like the “revolving door of foster care”. Emily shared, “When we stepped into foster care in 2020, we had big hopes to invite these families to Christmas dinner. We thought we could foster families and not just children. It was a disappointment that the dream of fostering families hadn’t been our reality. We truly believe in reunification, but no one wanted us.” As they struggled and grieved, Shane and Emily leaned into their faith. According to Shane, “Lots of times we felt like we were failing. We asked ourselves if this was what God wants for us, to be the temporary parents. Looking back, can see God was preparing us for what it would look like to be a family of seven. Our entire experience as foster parents has prepared us for each of the kids in our house.” At Project 1.27’s Family Christmas party in 2023, the McDaniels shared their discouragement with another Project 1.27 family, the Stephens. Emily describes their friendship with the Stephens like this, “It’s like we have a bonus family with the Stephens. They know what it is to be a foster family, to wrestle, to feel defeated.” The Stephens helped Shane and Emily think about all the things that had happened, and to see that what looked like a mess, was really a beginning. Today, Shane and Emily have a full house that includes two littles under two, two preteen middles, and a nineteen-year-old! After feeling like the revolving door of foster care, the four children Shane and Emily were fostering last Christmas have remained in their home, and they’ve welcomed a second little girl, who had been placed with the Stephens. Learning the little girl would need an adoptive family, Shane and Emily stepped in and are moving forward to adopt her. In November, Shane and Emily celebrated the adoption of the baby girl they welcomed in 2023. At the request of their nineteen-year-old, Jacob, the McDaniels are also pursuing adult adoption for him. Shane and Emily describe their new family dynamics this way, “The big helps with the middles. The middles help with the babies. The babies love their big brother. It’s a cool family dynamic. They need each other.” Shane goes on to share, “It is fascinating to see how much the children have in common even with wildly different backgrounds.” Reflecting on the beauty he’s seen as a foster dad, Shane shared, “I’m an eternal optimist. Every placement we’ve had I’ve grabbed hold of something beautiful. We’ve had some placements that were raw. One was hands-down the most difficult teenager I’ve ever experienced. One day, I took this teen to work with me and he immediately attached to my coworker, a guy whose life was in shambles. My teen thought this coworker was the coolest guy. That day, my coworker told the boy that there’s always hope when you know your Creator. I couldn’t get through to the boy when I shared about faith, but that day, my coworker could. Wow, I was not expecting that!”  Emily’s reflection on beauty went quickly to their oldest, Jacob. At 17, Jacob’s mom, his only family member, died of cancer. The McDaniels welcomed Jacob into their home. Recently, 9 News interviewed Jacob about his experience. Emily, listening to Jacob during the interview, was moved to tears when he shared, “I got a second chance in foster care. When I arrived, my foster parents said, ‘You’re ours now. Anything you need.’ It was wonderful. My foster parents, they just jumped right in.” Emily shared, “Listening to interview, I was teary-eyed, thinking Jacob is amazing. It feels crazy that this is our story. During the day-to-day we’re just getting through, minute-by-minute. It feels like we fail more than we succeed. It was amazing to hear Jacob share.”(Watch Jacob’s interview at https://www.9news.com/video/news/local/colorado-teen-puts-himself-in-foster-care/73-3e9ee603-3ba1-445c-a152-e241e8c6acac) Jacob is moving out on his own in January, but the McDaniels will always be his home base.
After sharing about Jacob, Emily shared about their recently adopted little girl, Emory. “I grieve the loss her “tummy mommy” must feel and the grief Emory will feel in the future not knowing anything about her biological family. Foster Care is hard. Not every season feels joyful, magical, fa-la-la. Even in the most beautiful situations we get to be part of, there is grief. And there is room for both.” Grief. Discouragement. Faith. Friends. Beauty. Emily and Shane know they are all part of fostering. Shane shared there a few ways you can pray for the McDaniel family. “We’re entering a season where all the children with us have adoption as a concurrent goal. This is the first time that has been true. We’re a family of 7 and there’s potential that this is our family. Pray for us as we navigate all the dynamics of what a forever family will look like. “ By Shelly Radic, Executive Director  We often assume that children are excited and love Christmas during the holiday season. Though this is frequently true, some foster and adopted children grieve past holiday memories with their biological families and become closed off or angry. Foster and adopted children may have strong emotional ties to past memories of Christmas and be confused about what to expect this year.
Once school is out, a change in routine and schedule can also add extra stress to children. Emotions may be driven by fear and anxiety, presenting hyperactive behavior, mood swings, frequent meltdowns, clinginess, or oppositional behavior. When this happens, foster and adoptive families need their support team to spring into action. Plus, you get to help create new holiday memories! Here are some ideas for providing support during this potentially stressful season: 1. Christmas crafts. Activities that allow you to work alongside a child to build connections are invaluable! Make Christmas decorations with the children or build snowmen with younger children or forts with youth. 2. Take the kids to community or church events. Although there are many parties and festivities, keep in mind that kids can become overstimulated by too much going on around them. Check with parents to find out if the child is triggered by sights, sounds, or too much sugar! 4. Help tackle the Christmas shopping. If you’re wanting to bless the family, it’s always best to find out what the family actually needs. Giving memberships to the zoo or museum can be a helpful way to provide a year's worth of activity for the family. 5. Wrap presents for the family and offer to store them at your home so the kids won’t be enticed by presents under the tree. 7. Babysit for an evening so the parents can go out to a work Christmas party or date night present shopping. 9. Host an evening of caroling and be sure to include songs that everyone, including the children, will know. 10. Provide a kid-friendly Nativity set and share the Christmas story 11. Bring a meal! Whether it’s a hot meal or a care package of simple meals, it’s always helpful to have one less thing to manage in the evening!! Re-posted from December 2017  Children in foster care or adoptive homes struggle with the impact of separation, loss, and the resulting grief. During the holidays, feelings and behaviors associated with grief and loss may escalate. Foster and adoptive parents can support the children in their home by acknowledging and affirming their losses. Children grieve in spurts and at expected and unexpected times, often expressed through their behaviors. Children may withdraw or isolate themselves, revert to bedwetting or a younger developmental age, and have temper tantrums.
Studies show that holidays are stressful for most of us, but reactions can be extreme for children in out-of-home placements. Children may be in good spirits at one moment, and the next could be aggressive behavior or crying. While the holidays may be difficult for everyone involved, there are some things you can do to not only help your family navigate the holidays but also to support the foster and adoptive children in your home.
 Does the Bible mandate everyone to foster or adopt children? NO. Does the Bible express God’s desire for us to “look after orphans and widows in their distress”? YES! James 1.27 states, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” Caring for orphans, children who need the protection and provision of a family, in the US can look like being foster parents, or it can look like church and community members caring for children in foster care and their parents, along with the kinship, foster and adoptive families caring for those children.
For many people, Foster Care seems daunting, scary, and just too hard. It may also seem that you have nothing to offer if you aren’t prepared to bring children into your home. That is far from the truth! Extending church programs you already have in place to kids and families involved with foster care, can make an enormous difference. Project 1.27 desires to come alongside your church to support and resource you in finding ways to care for vulnerable children and families. 1. Offer Trauma Informed Training so children and youth volunteers are equipped to care for and teach kids who have experienced significant trauma in your classes. For more information, contact Kym Schnittker at [email protected]. 2. Host a Kids’ Night Out to give foster parents time to recharge. Click here to learn more. 3. Care for foster families in your congregation and neighborhood. Here are some tips. Don’t forget PURE RELIGION SUNDAY is November 10th. By Kym Schnittker, Church and Community Relations Manager  As we snuggle in for the cooler weather and think about the beauty and warmth this season offers, we’re celebrating all the fun and generosity experienced at the Western Slope’s 2nd Annual Friends & Family Breakfast. God is doing new things! Guests were welcomed by pumpkins and mini gourds, a delicious grazing table, smiling faces, and full hearts.
Friends and family, many of them hearing about Project 1.27 for the first time, gathered to listen and share stories of lives impacted by foster, kinship, and adoptive care. Stories of children growing in surprising ways, catching fish, and moving into new rooms. Stories of long-time foster families closing their homes only to open them back up when a child who’d been there before needed them again. Stories of grandparents caring for their grandchildren and great-grandchildren being blessed by support groups, training, and resources. Others shared stories of their own childhood experiences and ways they wanted to get involved by donating meals or volunteering. Three donors decided to give monthly for the first time. Guests were asked, “What’s Your New Thing?””. How might you support Project 1.27 and the families and children we serve this season? Maybe your new thing is coming to an Info Meeting to learn more about fostering or joining the three monthly donors on the Western Slope and committing to a monthly donation. Maybe your new thing is making a meal for the Neighbors Program or a family participating in ECHOflex. Maybe your new thing is praying for Project 1.27 families and staff or talking with your church about the many opportunities to care for kids and families with foster care involvement. We’re praying that as you lean into the warm embrace of our Heavenly Father, you’ll hear the beat of His heart for kids and families who need you. We’re praying for the “new things” God has planned for your life, weaving you in new ways into the stories of kids and families being served by Project 1.27. We can’t wait to see what this season will bring with God directing new things! By Sharon Bouse-Ferry, ECHOflex Director  While foster parents spend months preparing and training to become certified before welcoming a child into their home, kinship caregivers often say yes to caring for a relative or family friend with no notice at all. "Foster parents go into this with forethought," Raeleen Woodbury, a kinship care grandmother, notes. "They plan, and they prepare. They often have a spouse, and together, they decide how they will financially support bringing a child into their home. They have a community and a support network to contact when they need help. Kinship providers are often thrown into a situation unprepared and without planning." Raeleen knows firsthand the struggle that kinship caregivers face. Raeleen moved from Tennessee to Colorado to care for her grandchildren. She is currently the sole caregiver for her two grandsons, River and Rowan, who she has cared for since birth.  Rowan with the Christmas gifts from the MOPS group After River was born, he spent some time in the NICU before Raeleen could take him home. She was new to the state, without friends, family, or a support network, and struggling to make ends meet and care for a newborn with complex medical issues. Over the years, Raeleen has leaned into the support Project 1.27 offers kinship families. She has attended the picnic and Christmas party to connect with other families and get the boys' diapers, clothes, shoes, and other resources. Last Christmas, Project 1.27 connected her with a MOPS group from a local church that blessed the family with Christmas presents for the boys, diaper rash cream, lotion, and boxes of diapers. The group wanted to get Raeleen a gift, too, so she asked for a crockpot to help prepare meals for the boys.  River with the Christmas gifts from the MOPS group In 2023, Raeleen was one of the first families to join the Neighbor Program under Project 1.27, where she was connected with a volunteer who provided monthly meals and encouragement.
"The Neighbor Program has probably been one of the greatest blessings we could've ever been given," Raeleen shares. "Project 127 has never thought twice about helping us or said anything hurtful regarding my difficult situation. They simply did God's work." When asked what advice she'd give other kinship families, Raeleen shared, "Don't worry about how much you have or don't have. God puts the right people in your path to help you when no one else does." In August, Raeleen received amazing news! She was able to finalize Rowan's adoption and officially move to Tennessee to be closer to family. By Jenny Watson, Director of Communication and Events  Orphan Sunday? Nope. Stand Sunday? Not anymore. The new name is Pure Religion
Sunday! This year, Pure Religion Sunday is November 10, 2024. It is a day set aside to help your church and community engage in caring for vulnerable children and families where you live by bringing focus and attention to adoption and foster care. When you participate in Pure Religion Sunday, you will join churches in over 120 countries to bring attention to something close to God's heart. Pure Religion Sunday was started by the Christian Alliance for Orphans, or CAFO, as a way for churches of all denominations worldwide to unite and be Champions for foster care and adoption. The name comes from James 1.27, "Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction..." CAFO strives to raise awareness of the needs of orphans around the globe by providing resources to churches to help recruit and care for foster and adoptive families. You may wonder what observing Pure Religion Sunday at your church means. Well, that is entirely up to you! You can make it as big or as small as you like. Here are some ideas:
One last question you may have, “Can I only observe Pure Religion Sunday on November 10th ”? And the answer is, “no”. You can absolutely observe Pure Religion at a time when it fits with your church calendar. For more information on how your church can plan for and observe Pure Religion Sunday, CLICK HERE. You can also contact our Church Engagement Manager, Kym Schnittker at [email protected] with any questions.  We’ve reached the middle of summer and most churches have planned and/or completed their summer programming for the children they serve. As we hear about VBS programs across the metro area and how churches are stepping in to care for vulnerable children, Project 1.27 received a surprise from one of our partner churches. As they planned their VBS, BRAVE church reached out and asked to partner with us in serving children in foster and adoptive homes. Each year, their High Five Campers (VBS) partners with a local ministry to support them and the people they serve by collecting donations. What an incredible way for children to learn about caring for others and showing God’s love! As Brave began encouraging their campers, they shared about Project 1.27 and even learned our missional verse from James 1.27. The focus for the VBS was: BECAUSE God loves US, we Love God and we LOVE OTHERS. YOU - get to LOVE KIDS (who are in foster or adoptive families) The High Five Campers donated nine tubs of summer fun items, including dolls, crafts, outdoor play sets, tents, soccer, football, volleyballs, soccer goals for the little ones, and so much more. In addition to the hard goods, we were blessed with a generous cash donation. Project 1.27 will give the items to foster families at our Summer Family Picnic on July 27th, and the money will go toward fun picnic activities and resources for teens. We are so grateful for Brave and the incredible items they donated to us as we continue to care for vulnerable children!  I am reminded of a book that was shared with me shortly after beginning Project 1.27. Jason Johnson, https://jasonjohnsonblog.com/books, wrote, “Everyone can do Something.” Jason discusses how to strategically care for orphans in developing your foster care or adoption ministry. We’re not all called to do the same thing, but we are all capable of doing something! Even the youngest members of Brave could do something that would glorify God in Brave Church's foster care and adoption ministry.
Here are a few things that Brave did that coincide with Jason’s book
By Marilyn Robinson, Director of Family Care |
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Project 1.27 • 14000 E. Jewell Ave. • Aurora, CO 80012
EIN 26-3341511
Copyright Project 1.27 • All Rights Reserved
EIN 26-3341511
Copyright Project 1.27 • All Rights Reserved