Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 21, Number 12, 1 December 2004 — Hawaiian foster care [ARTICLE]

Hawaiian foster care

In order to better serve displaced Native Hawaiian children, 144 Hawaiian foster parents are being sought by the Partners-In-Development Foundation. While nearly 50 percent of children placed in foster care in Hawai'i are of Hawaiian ancestry, 40 percent of them are placed in homes outside of their culture and ethnicity. In all, 2,700 children are placed in 1,900 foster homes statewide. Partners-In-Development received a grant of $715,536 from the Administration for Native Americans to actively recruit Native Hawaiian foster parents over the next three years. The foundation also receives state funding. Hawaiians interested in becoming foster parents should eall 595-2752. The pilot project will begin in the WestHawai'i region, including Kohala, Kona and Ka'ū, but Hawaiians from throughout the state interested in becoming foster parents are encouraged to eall.