As children in foster care grow beyond “toddler-hood,” the
probability of them finding a permanent home becomes less
and less likely. Once a foster child reaches the age of five it
is highly probable that they will drift from place to place within
the foster care system until they “age out.” The results will
be a childhood full of rejection, no long term stability, and
greatly increased risk of failure in school, victimization, drug
use, criminal behavior, and homelessness.
Oregon’s current foster care system is among the most
deplorable nation wide. On an average daily basis there are
10,000 children in Oregon Foster Care. Only one in five will
ever be adopted. 33% have been in foster care for more than
2 years and 36% will be moved in and out of 3 or more
placements. 65% of the children that "age out" of the system
face imminent homelessness.
The ideal solution is to provide a permanent home to these
“un-adoptable” children. Efforts to do so generally fail.
However a new model, Hope Meadows, has been proven to
work. After a 10 year record of creating a successful
“adoption community,” the Kellogg Foundation has invested
$4.0 million to replicate this model; initially in three sites.
Portland is one of those three.
Our community has rallied around this opportunity. The City
of Portland has donated two acres, valued at $1 million
dollars, to be the site for Portland Hope Meadows. Legend
Homes is contributing $900,000 toward to cost of constructing
the homes. A group of top level community leaders has
agreed to commit their time to getting the project off the
ground. Fund raising has begun, and over $400,000 in cash
has already been raised toward the $2.5 million initial
construction and start up costs. The Kellogg Foundation is
paying for technical support and training which will be
provided by Generations of Hope, the creator of the Hope
Meadows model. Now we must engage the broad community
in supporting this exciting program.
The Model
Hope Meadows is a “planned intergenerational community.”
Originated in Rantoul Illinois, Hope Meadows was designed to
provide a model of foster care and adoption that protects
children, offers permanency, and cultivates intergenerational
relationships. With a million dollar grant from the State of
Illinois, a 22-acre housing subdivision on a former air force
base in central Illinois was acquired as the site for Hope
Meadows. Existing structures were converted into 64 units of
various sizes, with 15 allocated to foster and adopted families,
44 to senior citizens, and 5 reserved for administrative and
community activities.
The basic strategy of Hope Meadows is to facilitate and
support naturally emergent relationships and lifetime
commitments across generational lines. The families who live
at Hope Meadows agree to adopt three or four children.
Families receive their housing free, and one of the parents
stays home and is paid a small salary, and provided health
insurance.
One of the keys to success for Hope Meadows, and the
element that makes it so innovative, is the use of seniors to
provide support, respite and “grand-parenting” services to
families in the community. The seniors are required to provide
6 hours per week of volunteer time and, in return, pay below
market rent for their housing. By and large, they volunteer
more time than is required. These older adults provide
indispensable support to the parents and their children, who
in turn are instrumental in promoting their well-being as they
age. Seniors gain meaningful purpose in their later years as
part of a caring community where they experience and grow
from engagement.
In Rantoul, the Hope Meadows neighborhood is unfenced and
with its tree-lined streets is virtually indistinguishable from
surrounding suburban housing. Today, there are 11 families at
Hope Meadows, with 28 adopted children, thirteen biological
children, and seven children still in foster care. With a natural
turnover of adoptive families who leave Hope Meadows, Hope
has helped 75 children achieve permanency for an overall
permanency rate (adoption or return home) of nearly 90%.
Oregon Foster Care is in need of an innovative alternative.
With the support of the Kellogg Foundation grant, Portland
Hope Meadows is proposing to provide just that. Portland is
the furthest along of any other potential replication site for
Hope Meadows. With the help of Generations of Hope,
Portland Hope Meadows will do for the children of Oregon
what has been done in Illinois: provide an intergenerational
community where children are not just fostered but adopted
permanently, and where marginalized people of all ages and
racial backgrounds support one another as a community and
as a lasting family.
Auction Date
October 26, 2007
The Governor Hotel
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