by Missions Team on March 24, 2020
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this…that we look after orphans in their distress—James 1:27
Every day, 14 kids in Colorado are removed from their families and placed into foster care. A local organization founded on the verse above, Project 1.27 acts as a bridge between kids in foster care in need of families and the church community. With over a decade of experience, Project 1.27 hopes to inspire, recruit and resource churches and families to foster and adopt the kids in their own backyard.
What do they do?
Project 1.27 offers Biblically-based training and trauma-informed resources that help build relationships not only between foster families and their children but also between these foster families and their churches and communities.
Project 1.27 also trains churches to become “Foster Adoption Friendly” by providing information, support for the development of foster-adoption ministries, and training and encouragement to ministry leaders and their families.
Here’s the process for individual families interested in foster or adoption using Project 1.27 ministries:
- Anyone who is interested in potentially fostering or adopting a child in the Colorado foster care system attends an informational night in which they can learn about the foster care system and Project 1.27. “Info Night” fulfills the first two hours of state-mandated training, yet it is offered from a Christian perspective.
- After attending Info Night, families can complete commitment forms and pay the $100 fee that allows access to forms, training and case manager support through Project 1.27.
- Once the family has committed to the process, there at least 6 training courses totaling around 40 hours of coursework over such things as CPR/First Aid and Core training that deals with situations many foster families encounter.
- Finally, after all of the training and further paperwork is complete and the family has found not only a great kid in need of love but also a great support group through Project 1.27, the family will be able to receive a foster or adoptive child in their home.
It’s certainly not an easy process. But since these children have had trauma “hijack” their stories and God’s purpose for their lives, it makes sense for us to be extremely intentional and wise in taking the next steps in their healing processes. After completing all necessary Project 1.27 training and finally welcoming foster children into their home, Chris and Liz Brodzinski said, “Project 1.27 had prepared us for [the trauma our child had experienced]. It didn’t make it necessarily any easier, but we realized we just wouldn’t solve it all at once…. We had to give [love] to her one moment at a time, over and over again to prove to her she was worthy of love.” Because of Project 1.27, the Brodzinskis have given their kids a chance to get back on God’s destination for their lives.
Are you interested in changing young lives in Colorado, too? To find out more about Project 1.27, please visit: https://www.project127.com
