AUSTIN –  As part of their recently announced _Network of Nurture Initiative_ [ http://gov.texas.gov/news/press-release/23048 ], Texas First Lady Cecilia Abbott and Department of Family and Protective Services Commissioner Hank Whitman today sent a letter to foster child placement providers across Texas praising an initiative that _Fostering Hope Austin_ [ https://www.fosteringhopeaustin.org/ ] (FHA) and the _Heart Gallery of Central Texas _ [ http://www.heartgallerytexas.com/ ]have launched to address the need for babysitting and short-term child care.

 

 

 

The initiative has created a joint application and training program that satisfies the requirements for babysitting providers of multiple child placement agencies in Central Texas. This regional community solution streamlines the process and provides one training session for multiple child placement agencies for those individuals who want to help families by providing short-term child care.  

 

 

 

“Providing the support that foster and adoptive families need is a bigger job than state government can do alone,” reads the letter. “We believe this collaboration has the potential to provide much needed support to thousands of foster and adoptive families in Central Texas.  But, the need for this kind of support is not unique to Central Texas. We want to see similar collaborations happening all over the state.”