9 Ways To Rally Around Foster Families In Las Vegas | By Heidi Zizz

When I first got married, I worked as a pre-k teacher at a small Christian school when God placed a desire in my heart for orphan care. I came home from work one day and told my husband we had to go to Ukraine and get babies out of orphanages. Unfortunately, that didn't happen!

However, what happened was a 14-year journey where the Lord walked with us while the answer was continually "no" to foster care in our own home. Even though I had an intense desire and felt a deep calling to this ministry, it was our season to wait.

In those 14 years, while we waited to step into foster care, He blessed our family with four biological children. Those years felt so long, constantly waiting for God's timing. I learned to listen to His voice and trust in His plan. Even though I knew it was our season to wait on Him, I desperately wanted to be all in with foster care. We found ourselves more and more surrounded by families participating in foster care in some capacity. At that time, we had friends who adopted domestically, adopted internationally, fostered children in their homes, and some adopted their children out of foster care. Even though we were praying for our turn to jump into foster care, we learned we still had a role to play even if we weren't taking placements. Our role for all those years is something called "wrap-around care."

I wrestled with how I could support the foster care ministry without taking a placement. Eventually, I found myself taking meals to friends when they received a new placement. I gave clothes to a momma of all boys when she found herself saying "yes" to a girl placement. I did laundry for a foster family once a week for about a year because it was a tangible way to help. I helped a friend of mine organize and create space in her home for the teenage mom of her foster placement to be able to move in with them and learn how to mother. One of the most significant responsibilities I had during that time was the call to pray for those families with current placements and everyone involved. It wasn't our season to say "yes" to foster care in our home, but I was still capable of supporting the families who were in the thick of the foster care ministry.

We were ecstatic when the Lord finally said "yes" to our desire to begin foster care! We had seven kids come through our home in the first eight months we were licensed. It was wild! Each of those precious children had a story that was heart-wrenching. Some were only with us for a couple of days. Some never left and became a part of our forever family. Each of them stretched and pulled us toward Jesus in a way that I'm not sure any other kind of experience could have.

Here's the thing about orphan care: not everyone is called to do it! That may not be what you've heard, but it's true! My husband and I do not believe every family is called to do orphan care in their home. However, everyone is called to do something.

When we accepted our first placements, we had many, many people surround us with tangible gifts of love and support. When people showed up in our lives to show love to our family while we navigated the turbulence of foster care, our family had extra space to focus on the children we had in our home. Everyone is called to do something, and the way you step in will be unique to you. Here are nine ideas of ways to rally around foster families in your area:

Organize a meal train
Deliver care packages (diapers, clothes, etc.)
Stock a supply pantry in your church (car seats, baby equipment, etc.)
Educate yourself about trauma to provide relational support
Have pizza delivered monthly
Attend court with the family for moral support
Help with laundry
Give a financial donation or gift cards to help offset costs
Pray. Do not underestimate this role—orphan care is a spiritual warfare battlefield!

This list is just some of the ways that you can provide a breath of relief to families in the thick of foster care. Foster care ministry is all-encompassing and often completely exhausting. Any glimmer of community help, encouragement, or support can sometimes be just the thing that foster/adoptive parents need to keep going.

You can provide this glimmer of hope! What is YOUR "something"?