MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The 5th annual All In Foster Care Summit is set for Wednesday at Chestnut Ridge Church in Morgantown.
Chestnut Mountain Village Director Greg Clutter said this year’s event called “Building the Way Together” is designed to motivate attendees to seek real change and to remain committed when the work gets tough.
“It helps move us from good intentions about how we all work together to some very practical action, and that’s what this day is all about,” Clutter said.
The Chestnut Mountain family of organizations is also responsible for the rollout of careportal across the state. The program aligns the faith community with businesses and advocates to provide a safety separate from any government assistance.
“That’s one thing that distinguishes the summit is that we’re bringing the faith community,” Clutter said. “About 1/3 of the 200 that will be there are representing local churches.”
This event will start with Coffee and Connection at 8:15 a.m., and the main program will begin at 9 a.m. The featured speakers this year are Andy Cook, the CEO and President of Promise 686; Brian Mavis, Founder of America’s Kids Belong; and Jason Weber, Director of More Than Enough – Christian Alliance for Orphans.
“They actually bring very practical, proven ways to show churches how they can play a role in supporting foster, adoptive, and biological families in very practical ways,” Clutter said.
Clutter said there have been improvements in some of the numbers recently, but the state still leads the nation in the number of children in foster homes per capita.
“We are seeing the numbers come down a bit for the children in care,” Clutter said. “What we are seeing from our vantage point is more churches getting engaged and supporting these families.”
The number of foster families is increasing slightly, and they’re staying to help longer than in the past. More support from the community, government, and events like this will continue to strengthen the system providing care to the most vulnerable.
“Foster families are staying in the game longer, and that alone is an important improvement,” Clutter said. “And we’re seeing the real stories and real impact of local churches.”
Gov. Patrick Morrisey is scheduled to attend the event at 10 a.m. Wednesday.