By Tom Kirvan
Legal News
With a history of strong support from the Detroit area legal community, the We Care Foster Care organization will showcase its programs at a fund-raising luncheon on Thursday, May 2 on the historic island of Belle Isle.
The luncheon’s location on an island is symbolic of those children who spend their youth in various foster care programs, oftentimes isolated from the mainstream world around them, yearning for a loving and nurturing environment in which they can thrive in an educational, emotional, and social sense.
So said Alexis Ramsey, executive director of We Care Foster Care, who has headed the nonprofit agency since the fall of 2020 after spending the bulk of her career in various educational and teaching roles overseas.
“The luncheon event ties in with Foster Care Awareness Month and will serve as an opportunity for the community to learn more about the impact of our various We Care programs,” said Ramsey, a University of Michigan product who earned her master’s degree from Wayne State University. “We are fortunate to have former Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence and former NBA player Greg Kelser of Fox Sports as our Honorary Hosts, while Justice Richard Bernstein of the Michigan Supreme Court will serve as our guest speaker at the luncheon.”
Bernstein, a former member of the Wayne State board of governors, was elected to the state’s highest court in 2014 after spending the first 15 years of his legal career in private practice as a personal injury attorney.
While in private practice, Bernstein devoted much of his pro bono efforts to protecting the rights of those with disabilities. A summa cum laude graduate of the University of Michigan, Bernstein earned his law degree from Northwestern University, reportedly becoming the first blind person to graduate from the elite law school.
We Care Foster Care formerly was known as “For the Seventh Generation,” a program to benefit foster care wards of the juvenile court in Wayne County.
The program was established in 2005 by the Detroit Bar Association Foundation in cooperation with the Wayne County Circuit Court as well as the Michigan Department of Human Services.
“We changed the name of the program to more accurately reflect our mission and to broaden our levels of support in the community,” Ramsey explained, noting that the organization developed a five-year strategic plan to “create and facilitate new and improved models of care for our society’s most vulnerable children” in the metro Detroit community.
“We have spent the last two years performing an investigative deep dive into foster care, foster youth, and how the system works and doesn’t work in today’s environment,” Ramsey wrote in the We Care Programming Final Report for the 2022/23 Academic Year. “By spending time with kids in the foster care system, we have learned firsthand the challenges they face and the limitations of what is and is not available to them. In response, we have built both program and client partnerships to develop and implement innovative programs that provide the care these children need to thrive.”
Ramsey indicated that Michigan has approximately 13,000 children and young adults in foster care, more than 3,000 of which are in Wayne County.
“Disproportionate numbers suffer from a grim parade of mental health issues and poor educational outcomes,” Ramsey said, noting that in 2021 the four-year graduation rate for Michigan foster youth was merely 39 percent, the lowest of any student demographic group.
The numbers tell an even grimmer tale for those departing foster care programs, according to Ramsey.
“Unfortunately, the statistics regarding homelessness, incarceration, and young parenthood among aging-out foster youth are equally troubling,” she said. “A staggering 33 percent of young people who age out in Michigan report experiencing homelessness between the ages of 19 and 21.
“Additionally, 25 percent find themselves incarcerated during the same period, while 27 percent become parents, all within a critical phase of their lives when they should be building a foundation for a brighter future.
Ramsey said the “ life challenges these children are forced to endure are obscene: abuse, neglect, human trafficking, and mental illness,” Ramsey added. “They are angry. They are tired. And they are too frustrated and too scared to learn. Many suffer from anxiety, depression, self-harm, and drug dependency.”
To address the array of challenges, We Care Foster Care has created a “Quilt of Care that includes our EduCare and Life Care programs along with our We Care You Care Partners,” Ramsey related.
The EduCare programs include a “Mathematics Plain + Simple” component designed to enhance problem-solving capabilities in pre-algebra and algebra courses. In the artistic realm, a “Drawing on Our Strengths” program “helps kids visualize and explore social skills in a fun and memorable way” through drawing. Other components of EduCare are “Improve with Improv,” a program geared toward helping kids overcome social anxiety and awkwardness, and “Play It Forward,” a project providing hands-on experience learning to play musical instruments.
Client partners of We Care Foster Care include Vista Maria, a girls’ residential facility in Dearborn Heights; Clara B. Ford, a charter school located on the campus of Vista Maria; and Christ Child House, a residential treatment center for boys ages 6-16.
“We are grateful for our client partners and all that they do,” Ramsey declared. “Support is needed from We Care and other organizations because the work is intense and vast, and change is not possible without meaningful partnerships. We Care and our program partners are working successfully provide the additional support needed to responsibly serve these children.”
Sponsorship opportunities for the May 4 luncheon in Detroit range from $1,200 to $10,000, while individual tickets can be purchased for $200. To register for the event, visit wecarefostercare.org.
Legal News
With a history of strong support from the Detroit area legal community, the We Care Foster Care organization will showcase its programs at a fund-raising luncheon on Thursday, May 2 on the historic island of Belle Isle.
The luncheon’s location on an island is symbolic of those children who spend their youth in various foster care programs, oftentimes isolated from the mainstream world around them, yearning for a loving and nurturing environment in which they can thrive in an educational, emotional, and social sense.
So said Alexis Ramsey, executive director of We Care Foster Care, who has headed the nonprofit agency since the fall of 2020 after spending the bulk of her career in various educational and teaching roles overseas.
“The luncheon event ties in with Foster Care Awareness Month and will serve as an opportunity for the community to learn more about the impact of our various We Care programs,” said Ramsey, a University of Michigan product who earned her master’s degree from Wayne State University. “We are fortunate to have former Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence and former NBA player Greg Kelser of Fox Sports as our Honorary Hosts, while Justice Richard Bernstein of the Michigan Supreme Court will serve as our guest speaker at the luncheon.”
Bernstein, a former member of the Wayne State board of governors, was elected to the state’s highest court in 2014 after spending the first 15 years of his legal career in private practice as a personal injury attorney.
While in private practice, Bernstein devoted much of his pro bono efforts to protecting the rights of those with disabilities. A summa cum laude graduate of the University of Michigan, Bernstein earned his law degree from Northwestern University, reportedly becoming the first blind person to graduate from the elite law school.
We Care Foster Care formerly was known as “For the Seventh Generation,” a program to benefit foster care wards of the juvenile court in Wayne County.
The program was established in 2005 by the Detroit Bar Association Foundation in cooperation with the Wayne County Circuit Court as well as the Michigan Department of Human Services.
“We changed the name of the program to more accurately reflect our mission and to broaden our levels of support in the community,” Ramsey explained, noting that the organization developed a five-year strategic plan to “create and facilitate new and improved models of care for our society’s most vulnerable children” in the metro Detroit community.
“We have spent the last two years performing an investigative deep dive into foster care, foster youth, and how the system works and doesn’t work in today’s environment,” Ramsey wrote in the We Care Programming Final Report for the 2022/23 Academic Year. “By spending time with kids in the foster care system, we have learned firsthand the challenges they face and the limitations of what is and is not available to them. In response, we have built both program and client partnerships to develop and implement innovative programs that provide the care these children need to thrive.”
Ramsey indicated that Michigan has approximately 13,000 children and young adults in foster care, more than 3,000 of which are in Wayne County.
“Disproportionate numbers suffer from a grim parade of mental health issues and poor educational outcomes,” Ramsey said, noting that in 2021 the four-year graduation rate for Michigan foster youth was merely 39 percent, the lowest of any student demographic group.
The numbers tell an even grimmer tale for those departing foster care programs, according to Ramsey.
“Unfortunately, the statistics regarding homelessness, incarceration, and young parenthood among aging-out foster youth are equally troubling,” she said. “A staggering 33 percent of young people who age out in Michigan report experiencing homelessness between the ages of 19 and 21.
“Additionally, 25 percent find themselves incarcerated during the same period, while 27 percent become parents, all within a critical phase of their lives when they should be building a foundation for a brighter future.
Ramsey said the “ life challenges these children are forced to endure are obscene: abuse, neglect, human trafficking, and mental illness,” Ramsey added. “They are angry. They are tired. And they are too frustrated and too scared to learn. Many suffer from anxiety, depression, self-harm, and drug dependency.”
To address the array of challenges, We Care Foster Care has created a “Quilt of Care that includes our EduCare and Life Care programs along with our We Care You Care Partners,” Ramsey related.
The EduCare programs include a “Mathematics Plain + Simple” component designed to enhance problem-solving capabilities in pre-algebra and algebra courses. In the artistic realm, a “Drawing on Our Strengths” program “helps kids visualize and explore social skills in a fun and memorable way” through drawing. Other components of EduCare are “Improve with Improv,” a program geared toward helping kids overcome social anxiety and awkwardness, and “Play It Forward,” a project providing hands-on experience learning to play musical instruments.
Client partners of We Care Foster Care include Vista Maria, a girls’ residential facility in Dearborn Heights; Clara B. Ford, a charter school located on the campus of Vista Maria; and Christ Child House, a residential treatment center for boys ages 6-16.
“We are grateful for our client partners and all that they do,” Ramsey declared. “Support is needed from We Care and other organizations because the work is intense and vast, and change is not possible without meaningful partnerships. We Care and our program partners are working successfully provide the additional support needed to responsibly serve these children.”
Sponsorship opportunities for the May 4 luncheon in Detroit range from $1,200 to $10,000, while individual tickets can be purchased for $200. To register for the event, visit wecarefostercare.org.
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