JOIN US! First Thursday of every month Community Alliance Church 800 Mercer Rd, Butler 7:00 - 8:00 PM

Removal day can be one of the hardest days a child will ever experience. When children enter an Isaiah 117 House, they are welcomed by a caregiving volunteer and/or Program Coordinator.  Their goal is to provide lavish love and meet their needs – baths/showers, meals, new clothes and shoes, hygiene products, hugs, support, and a listening ear!

Children and teens lead the way as they give their voice a choice. They could choose to play outside on the swing set or shoot basketball.  They might choose video games or Barbie dolls and dress up. They might even choose to sit in their own space on the couch while eating chocolate chip cookies as they begin to process their day.  

The guests are often at Isaiah 117 Homes for several hours, but at other times, they stay a few days.  What could have been a very traumatic day in a child welfare office is transformed by walking through a red door and experiencing lavish love and grace.

Child welfare takes a special kind of person and is really hard work. This work is made even harder when having to do it alone.  

A core purpose of Isaiah 117 House is to lighten the load on those child welfare workers by creating space where they can take a breath as they focus on finding the best placement for the children.

The home’s office will be equipped with a printer, chargers, and other office necessities.  Case workers can use this space to make sensitive phone calls separate from the children.  The house is stocked with their favorite snacks and coffees, and we include them in meal plans for the day

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Isaiah 117 House is changing the way foster care begins.

Another purpose of Isaiah 117 House is to ease the transition for foster families and make their “yes” less of a burden.  When a call for placement comes in the middle of the night, few foster parents are prepared to give baths and do bedtime with a scared set of siblings who are coming with no clothes, car seats, or possessions of any kind.  It’s hard to say yes!

Isaiah 117 House can provide the placement a bed, car seat, formula, diapers, or dinner.  While the call may still come in the middle of the night, “the ask” is to say yes to a sibling set who spent the day at Isaiah 117 House.  They took baths, have full bellies and duffle bags of their own new clothes for the next several days.  They have everything they need to go to school the next morning.  The foster family can focus on welcoming the children and helping them settle into their new home instead of having to rush around to stores to buy everything the children need.  This is crucial in reducing trauma as the children feel less of a burden or interruption to their new home.

Easing the transition into placement not only changes the way foster care begins, but it can increase the number of foster families in the community.