CFLM Has Big News!

Dear CFLM Friends and Family,

Just 3 years ago, CFLM began our Foster Care Initiative throughout Clarke and Oconee Counties to equip the Church to care for and meet the needs of local foster families. At the time, this community had less than 20 foster homes available to the 150+ foster children in need of love and protection. Since then, we have worked through 24 local churches to create Care Teams with over 550 trained volunteers to serve more than 60 local foster families with tangible and prayerful support. From less than 20 foster homes to over 60, this community has taken a true initiative to serve these foster families and children in their season of great need. 

CFLM has been proud to work alongside DFCS, private foster care agencies, and many other organizations to help grow the number of foster homes in this area. In no way can we claim sole credit for that truly beautiful increase in the number of foster homes our community has seen over the years. This growth has been the result of a wonderful collaboration of like-minded agencies and organizations all working together for the good of the children in this community. Through CFLM’s specific role, it is evident to us that by equipping the church to find their role in serving these families, local foster families have been better supported, well cared for, and well prayed for. 

The result? A growing number of foster families who are supported in their journey and equipped to foster longer than they might have without our help. But don't just take our word for it - hear it from the mouths of foster parent that have personally experienced the support of our Care Teams. You can listen to one testimony at our Resource Library under "From the CFLM Archives" and read another below from a foster family who had just met their Care Team for the first time:

“What a night…[we] are still just in awe of it all. The calling we have to foster has been on our hearts for many years. We were nervous jumping into it, but we know this is our path and God has placed the perfect people alongside us the entire way. And now our village has arrived!! What a blessing! After everyone left last night, we just felt a SENSE OF PEACE and CALMNESS about it all. So thank you for what ya’ll do. It means the world!”

– Local Foster Parent with a CFLM Care Team

I am telling you all of this so you can see what an impact this Foster Care Initiative has made on our community and to help you understand why it is so important that we grow to offer this support to even more communities! CFLM has an agreement with Promise686 (the organization whose model we implement in this Initiative) to expand our services throughout all of DFCS Region 5 - a total of 12 counties. For months, many considerations have been discussed, researched, and prayed over including our capacity to expand, what direction to expand towards, where there was great need of our expansion, where there was ample support of our expansion, and so much more. As the Lord has provided both the means and guidance, we are excited to announce that while we continue to serve Clarke and Oconee counties, we will be expanding our Foster Care Initiative into Walton County beginning in August of 2017.

As we enter this new season, we would ask that you commit to praying for us in the following ways:

• That we would continually steward well the funds and resources we have been so generously provided.
• For continued provision as we grow our services.
• For the Lord to raise up and prepare churches and their members to respond to the need and to His commands.
• For the foster children of Walton County, their birthparents, their foster parents, and their caseworkers as they collectively work towards the family’s reunification.
• For CFLM to be a light in a dark season of these family’s lives and make known our Good, Heavenly Father.

Thank you for coming along on this journey with us! To learn more about our Foster Care Initiative, watch the video below and let us know if you have questions or are interested in getting involved. We can’t wait to see what our Father has in store!

Mary Lee Herron, Executive Director