One case of child abuse or neglect is one case too many. Children all around the world should live peacefully and without traumas. Unfortunately, the reality is that it is not the case. ContactsforLess.ca thanks the Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada for the hard work they do all year long, one of the many reasons why we support this group.
From the Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada
WHO WE ARE
We help kids in care go from surviving to thriving.
Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada is our country’s leading charity dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth growing up in the child welfare system. Together with our community of dedicated donors and supporters, we are helping these young people move from surviving to thriving, and we are helping to empower them to break the cycle of abuse and neglect they were born into through no fault of their own.
Working with over 75 child- and youth-serving agencies in nearly every province and territory across Canada, we fill the gaps between what the government is able to provide and what vulnerable young people need to move confidently forward and create a bold vision of success for themselves.
ABOUT STAND UP FOR KIDS
Stand Up for Kids is Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada’s movement to galvanize change for children and youth in the child welfare system and transform their prospects for a successful future. The movement engages a national audience of caring Canadians – individuals, community groups, schools and workplaces and challenges them to take a stand and take action in meaningful, personal ways. All Canadians have a role to play in improving the lives of kids in care. Together, we will stand up for kids in care who urgently need support and stand alongside former youth in care as they enter adulthood.
WHO WE SUPPORT
Through no fault of their own, hundreds of thousands of children and youth have experienced or live at risk of abuse and neglect. The future for kids involved with child welfare is bleak: 63,000 live in foster care without a permanent family, they have a less than 50 per cent chance of graduating high school, and are at a higher risk of living in poverty, becoming homeless, and experiencing mental health and addiction issues. Additionally, four in five have special needs.
The average young person in care moves between seven different foster homes during their time in the system. Most live without the unconditional love and support of a family and close group of friends that many of us take for granted growing up. Each day brings the possibility of a new trauma. For kids in care, normal shouldn’t mean living on the streets is safer than living at home. Normal shouldn’t mean watching a parent beat a sibling or having to quit school to take care of younger siblings. No kid should think of these situations as normal. Together, we need to take a stand.
To learn more go to: https://www.cafdn.org/standupforkids/