Non-profit Spotlight: Heartland for Children
If you have ever thought about fostering a child or teenager the time is now…
“Becoming a foster parent was a no-brainer for my family and me! After my two children reached adulthood, I knew it was time to give back to my community. After discussing it with my kids, we all agreed that fostering would be the best fit for us. Although I am a single foster parent, parenting comes naturally to me, and I can see the positive impact my family is making in the life of our new addition to our family.”
-Marcia, Heartland for Children Foster Parent
Heartland for Children (HFC) is the non-profit lead agency overseeing Community Based Care in Circuit 10 which includes Hardee, Highlands and Polk counties in Central Florida. As the child welfare lead agency, HFC is concerned with the welfare of children in our community, and as such, our mission is to improve the safety, permanency, and well being for all children in Hardee, Highlands and Polk counties.
HFC is responsible for the provision of services for more than 1800 children who have been abused and/or neglected. These services include adoption, case management, foster care, and independent living. We manage a comprehensive, community-based, coordinated system of care for abused, neglected, and abandoned children and their families and for children and families who are at risk of maltreatment and/or placement in the foster care system.
Heartland for Children was founded in 2003, and has been serving children and families in Polk, Hardee and Highlands counties for the past 10 years. While Heartland is responsible for a number of community-based care services, the greatest need at this time is quality foster parents. Each quality foster parent has a unique background—single, married, and cohabiting foster parents, parents who foster one child and parents that foster large sibling groups, parents of all educational and socioeconomic backgrounds. And children in foster care are just as unique and diverse—infants, teens and young adults are served through our local system of care.
If you would like to learn more about Heartland for Children and how you might get involved as a foster parent or Foster Friends volunteer, or any of Heartland’s many child abuse prevention initiatives, visit HeartlandForChildren.org or call 863-518-8900 x 289.