ADVOCACY

The lingering question remains, who will fight for me?

When we believe there is no Justice and no one will take an account for what happened to us, we feel an inherent sense of worthlessness. We think if no one cares about what happened to me, then I must not be worth much at all. These feelings of worthlessness can affect even those who haven't experienced the trauma of abuse or other physical pain. The Bible says feelings of worthlessness can come on the people of God when they are not rightly taught that God takes an account for wrongs. In Jeremiah 23, the Lord urges His people not to listen to this destructive teaching that says those who despise the Lord and do wrong will somehow be blessed and have peace.

I know Jesus will bring Justice, not just because it is the right or legal thing to do, but because it is something a Just God must do. When people are harmed, when the weak are crushed, when children are abused, Jesus takes it personally. He holds deeply the injustice we have suffered in His heart, Isaiah 63:4.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

When we think the wrongs done to us don't matter to God, we cannot recognize our true worth. Our hearts were made to cry out, “Who will fight for us?” A cry that can often be suppressed in our human attempt to be godly or a cry that can be misdirected to those who are unable to bring the justice we long for. No matter how hard we try to bury that cry, it will fester like a wound unless we come to know Jesus as the source of the justice we so desperately seek.

Without the revelation of God as Just, we have no real response to the darkness and torment human beings are bringing upon other human beings. Human language is not supposed to adequately describe the things that hell has invented. Left with the age old question of why there is suffering and injustice in the world. Causing a bankruptcy in our faith and witness as we struggle to limit the power of God to the modern version of Jesus as meak, mild and timid. To go into the aspect of God’s justice can cause us to be uncomfortable, if we think of it from an incorrect perspective that God is angry or harsh. It is this fear that causes us to tame-down the power of the gospel, and dismiss the most needed benefits of Jesus as our Just judge. It is actually His fierce and devoted love that causes Him to long to bring forth Justice.

Only when we have come to know Jesus as Just will we have adequate answers for the most broken people we encounter each day, people who are crying out for Justice yet who do not know the one to whom they can direct their cry.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

God's message of comfort includes His commitment to those who suffer. Jesus wants to heal our hearts with the revelation that He is just, and He wants to give good news for the oppressed. Reminding people of Jesus's tears without acknowledging His power to act on their behalf presents an incomplete representation of His attributes.

No one, except Jesus, is worthy to bring judgement on the wrongs that have occured. The Father's standards are too high when it comes to who will stand as the judge of all humanity. No one can say is Jesus is unsympathetic, being fully man, tempted and tested as we have been, yet uncorrupted by absolute power. His justice is to lift the week rather than crush them, because He is righteous. As Isaiah 42:3 says, “a bruised reed He will not break, and a faintly burning wick He will not quench; He will faithfully bring forth Justice”.

As the perfect carrier of Justice, Jesus will not be indiscriminate with His judgment, accidentally bringing wrath or losing his temper. He sees the struggling individual who cries out to Him as a “bruised reed” that He will not break. He does not stop being merciful in order to bring forth Justice. He does not suspend one attribution to express another. He is righteous and just and He is perfectly merciful and kind every step of the way. Jesus’ fierceness as depicted in Isaiah 63 is 100% consistent with the God who is love itself. In fact, it is because of His great love that He fights fiercely against everything that keeps us from experiencing His love.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

We need to know that Jesus saw and heard what no one else did and that He will avenge the wrong. Through the heart of Jesus, we can come to understand a God who says what happened to us was significant and that someone must pay. Yet in his mercy Jesus offers Himself as the solution and the recipient of the just punishment.

Knowing Jesus as our just judge will not turn us into spiteful Christians who constantly speak negative words of judgment and condemnation. The exact opposite is true. When we understand that Jesus is just, we realize an equally important truth… we are not! Understanding Jesus as the answer to the justice we seek, allows us to truly comprehend forgiveness in a whole new way. Forgiveness is not about Jesus looking the other way, but about us trusting our case to Him. By forgiving what seems impossible to release, we can make the mercy of Jesus famous and see His perfect justice brought forth.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) is a study that measures the ten leading types of childhood trauma, 50% accessed from direct trauma endured and 50% accessed from trauma experienced as a result of domestic situations. In 1998, CDC-Kaiser Permanente published a groundbreaking study that investigated the impact of ACEs on physical and mental health problems. ACEs is a simple ten question test that provide insightful information to the level of trauma a child has experienced.

Each type of trauma a child has experienced counts as one point in the ACEs testing. So a child who has been physically abused, with a drug addict parent who witnessed domestic violence and their parent's divorce has an ACEs score of four.

The effects of adverse childhood experiences often cause children to act out and be marginalized. Statistically children with an ACEs score of 4 or above are thirty-two times more likely to have learning or behavior problems in school. 12.5% of all kids in the US have an ACEs score that is 4 or above.

The effects of adverse childhood experiences carries well over into adulthood, with statistics showing us that adults with an ACEs score of 4 or above:

• Dies an Average of 20 Years Sooner

• 4.5X as likely to become depressed,

• 7X more likely to develop alcoholism

• 10X more likely for drug abuse

• 12X more likely to commit suicide

When caring for children who have been victimized to one degree or another, the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) testing allows for caregivers and parents to understand measurably the challenges the child is facing.

Research has found that a child with an ACEs score of four or above is four times more likely to become depressed, seven times more likely to develop substance abuse, and thirty-two times more likely to have learning or behavior problems in school. ACEs scores give us the ability to peer into the challenges children are experiencing as a result of trauma. This study also shows the connection between these adverse childhood experienced and our society's biggest problems.

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Taking the ACEs test as an adult is also beneficial. Sometimes those who are drawn to care or advocate for traumatized children have had an element of trauma in their childhoods. By taking the ACEs test, adults can better understand their trauma as they walk out their journey of healing and serve children in that same healing process. CLICK HERE TO TAKE THE ACES TEST HERE

There are specific things we know that children want and need. We have created registries with Amazon where items can be purchased. If you feel more comfortable with purchasing an item please go to our Christmas Wish List to make a purchase.

We also welcome unused or partially used gift cards. They can be mailed to our office address of 705B SE Melody Lane #114, Lees Summit, MO 64063

Yes! If you have a child or family that you would like to sponsor, when processing your donation, there is a field titled "SPONSOR A SPECIFIC CHILD OR FAMILY?" In that field, be sure to enter their name and cell phone number to contact them about their gift! Specified sponsorships are available to any foster/adopt family within the United States.

We work closely with local businesses and organizations for in-kind donations. Last year, we received $20 in in-kind-donations for every cash donated dollar ($100 donated = $2,000 worth of gifts-in-kind received).

Victimized children desperately need connection, and they need to build trust. Often this is tricky, primarily when new relationships are forming. Traumatized children do not just open up and share their hearts. They need connections first! A "connection" often occurs through shared experiences. Often victimized children have NEVER experienced normal childhood activities like going to the zoo, museums, amusement parks, etc. Even something as simple as a family movie night is a foreign experience. These experiences open communication, remove discomfort, and start to build/deepen trust and relationships.

As all parents know, caring for children is a big job and requires lots of time. Caring for victimized children who have suffered unimaginable horrors is exhausting and all-consuming! Every hour we can give a frontline family, we provide them with the ability to recharge, stay in the fight for children, and spend more time with the children who desperately need them! More time is one of the most significant gifts we can give to children in crisis!

By giving time-saving memberships, we provide the gift of time. For example, if we gifted annual grocery delivery memberships to 250 families, we could impact the lives of approximately 1,000 VICTIMIZED CHILDREN! Families can gain 5 hours per week from their membership, which means that the children RECEIVE 65,000 MORE HOURS from their caregivers throughout the year! To a victimized child, this is huge and life-changing!

Victimized children desperately need connection, and they need to build trust. Often this is tricky, primarily when new relationships are forming. Traumatized children do not just open up and share their hearts. They need connections first! A "connection" often occurs through shared experiences. Often victimized children have NEVER experienced normal childhood activities like going to the zoo, museums, amusement parks, etc. Even something as simple as a family movie night is a foreign experience. These experiences open communication, remove discomfort, and start to build/deepen trust and relationships.

As all parents know, caring for children is a big job and requires lots of time. Caring for victimized children who have suffered unimaginable horrors is exhausting and all-consuming! Every hour we can give a frontline family, we provide them with the ability to recharge, stay in the fight for children, and spend more time with the children who desperately need them! More time is one of the most significant gifts we can give to children in crisis!

When a child's heart longing is met, it can open their hearts in more profound ways. We have found that for victimized children, most often, their heartfelt wish is not things. Like organizations granting children's last wishes, rarely are toys requested by the child. Children who have experienced significant trauma look at life differently; their longings are often not for "stuff" but "new feelings."

The beauty of it is that the child determines it. It may be horseback riding, guitar lessons, going to a baseball game, or a fun night with friends. It may even be a makeover to build their confidence. We purposefully keep the specifics of these gifts vague so that the gifts can be child-led. Requiring more work for us to coordinate efforts with frontline families, and they tend to be more expensive. Our dream is to provide every child with $100 towards their heart's longing. The reward of seeing a child's heartfelt wish met is unlike anything else! Often, it creates new emotions for a child that they have never felt. It makes them feel heard, cared for, and valued. All of which are emotions that victimized children have rarely felt.

There are specific things we know that children want and need. We have created registries with Amazon and Walmart where items can be purchased. If you feel more comfortable with purchasing an item please go to our links page and click on the desired registry.

We also welcome unused or partially used gift cards. They can be mailed to our office address of 705B SE Melody Lane #114, Lees Summit, MO 64081

We work closely with local businesses and organizations for in-kind donations, our minimum goal is to double every donated dollar ($100 donated = $200 worth of gifts received), etc/

By giving time-saving memberships, we provide the gift of time. For example, if we gifted annual grocery delivery memberships to 250 families, we could impact the lives of approximately 1,000 VICTIMIZED CHILDREN! Families can gain 5 hours per week from their membership, which means that the children RECEIVE 65,000 MORE HOURS from their caregivers throughout 2021! To a victimized child, this is huge and life-changing!

Yes! If you have a child or family that you would like to sponsor, when processing your donation, there is a field titled "SPONSOR A SPECIFIC CHILD OR FAMILY?" In that field, be sure to enter their name and cell phone number to contact them about their gift! Specified sponsorships are available to any foster/adopt family within the United States.

With more than 440,000 children in full-time foster care and annual surges of over 680,000 children under the jurisdiction of child welfare agencies —and growing—our nation has a critical shortage of homes.

Children come into care for many different reasons. In 2018, 36% or 94,386 children were removed from their homes due to parental drug abuse, a 7% growth over the previous year. 163,543 children—62% of those entering care—were placed in foster care due to neglect, which often is exacerbated by parental drug use. Many state officials say the surge of children entering foster care is a direct result of the ever-increasing drug epidemic.

From 2010, the number of children who had official reports of abuse & neglect filed in the U.S. have increased from 5.9 million per year to 7.8 million per year, a 32% increase.

As a result, Child Protective Services officially investigated reports involving 3.5 million children in 2018 alone, a 2.2% decrease from 2010.

678,000 children were verified as victims of abuse & neglect in 2018 alone. However, only 146,706 of those children end up in full time foster care, less than 22%.

Despite the steady increase of over 32% in official reports of abuse and neglect, Child Protective Services has seen an overall drop by almost 14% of official cases opened since 2010.

These numbers cause our greatest fear to seem to be a likely reality, due to the inadequate number of foster homes, child-welfare investigators could potentially be hesitating to bring "at-risk children" into full-time care.

Since, 2010 child fatalities have increased by over 14%. In 2018, there were over 1,770 child fatalies nationwide. From 2010 till 2018, a staggering 14,757 children have died from abuse and neglect. 79% of the victims were under the ag​​​​​​​e of 3.

There's only 200,000 licensed foster families to provide homes to the annual surge of 687,000 children already receiving foster care services = approx. 3.4 children/ family. Of these 200,000 foster homes, 50% will stop fostering within the first year. Inadequate training and lack of support are cited as the primary reasons for quitting, not the children.

Being a family mentor is not your ordinary volunteer job. People who give their time to become a foster family mentor come from many different walks of life. Some have years of foster care experience; others are newer to fostering. The length of experience is not our sole determination of who might make a good foster family Mentor.

We are looking for individuals who have a positive perspective on fostering. Who does not deny the difficulties, but maintains a healthy viewpoint that God is still at work amid foster care, despite its challenges.

Mentors are business professionals, teachers, secretaries, doctors, stay-at-home moms & dads, retired people, military service people, etc. Some are currently fostering themselves, some fostered recently, and some fostered years ago.

A mentor desires to help a new foster family overcome the hurdles of foster care with one-on-one support, reality-based training, and practical solutions to complex problems that they can provide through 10.18 Strategy resources, their personal experience, or the experience of others.

Court and foster experience is required to become a mentor. We’ve found that having this experience is needed to help new foster families navigate the complexities of each case effectively and with the best interest of all involved.

Requirements:

• 21 years old

• High School Diploma

• No felony convictions

Qualifications:

• Have 2+ years of foster care experience

• Maintain confidentiality of all family’s personal information, all child’s case information, and other parties involved.

• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing

• Ability to respect and relate to people from various backgrounds

• Desire to advocate for a foster family and approach their journey with a positive attitude

First and foremost is a desire to help families and a heart for children. Because part of our work includes abused and traumatized children, we try to ensure the safety and well-being of the families we serve by extensive screening of our volunteers. In addition to the application, volunteers are interviewed, references obtained, and background checks conducted before a mandated training course. Our mentors have staff supervisors to help every step of the way and resources readily available to assist.

Training:

• Complete 10.18 Strategy’s Core Competency training

• Comprehensive ongoing training as required by 10.18 Strategy

Our mentors average about 5-10 hours of service per month. Once assigned a family, we ask that mentors commit to their service to that family for two years. This ensures that new families have the vital support resources that they need to address the most common challenges that new foster families face.

One visit per month with the family is typically sufficient. However, a relationship is critical when mentoring a family, and much of the time, you cannot put a time frame on that. 10.18 Strategy would like to see all mentors engaging consistently & going the extra mile when the circumstances require it.

The basics of being a mentor to foster families are providing support throughout the journey. Support, to us, looks like a relationship. You’re drawing from your own experiences and putting yourself into the lives of others that can significantly benefit from those experiences. Not only can a mentor be someone that joins playdates, birthday parties, school events, but can participate in family dinners, be a shoulder to lean/cry on, be someone to pray with, and more. A mentor desires to get involved in the family’s life. The closer those relationships become, the more meaningful the experience will be to all involved.

Family Support by Mentors Looks Like:

1. Build Relationship with the Family: Fostering can be lonely, and the Mentor’s primary role is to be that family’s primary support person and build a relationship with them.

2. In-Person Visits: Families need relationships, and they need this face-to-face as often as possible. We ask Mentors to attempt a face-to-face visit with one or both foster parents every month. These visits do not require the entire family or the children to be present. We encourage a variety of types of visits to give many different opportunities for the families to open up about their struggles in different settings and with/without the presence of children.

3. “Be Their Rock”: The emotional challenges of fostering mean that families need a rock of emotional support. Pray, cry, and rejoice with them! Listen and relate to the emotional challenges of fostering and guide them to the Biblically-based reasons why they are doing fostering. Remind them of their training and the Biblical truths that create faith and trust in the midst of the unknown. Be their sounding board and their “go-to-person”!

4. Explain What Is Going On: Learning the court process, timelines, acronyms, etc. can be very confusing to a first-time foster parent. Your job is to simplify the confusion and explain things throughout each step of their journey.

5. “Be The Guide”: Guide families to resources, support, and solutions. Remind them of their training and the four core competencies of capable foster parents.

6. Recommend Services: Ensure that the children and the family are receiving appropriate services and encourage regional support resources that may be beneficial to them.

7. Monitor their Case: Stay up-to-date on what is happening in their case. Help them with tips on how to communicate with case management teams. What they should be doing while waiting, etc.

8. Provide Assistance with Reports: During training, you and the families will learn how to submit reports to the case management team and the court. These reports are an effective tool “when done correctly.” Careful oversight of your family’s written reports is vital to the success of their advocacy efforts. A thorough review of their written reports will be a central part of your Mentorship. The family writes the report, and your job is to suggest edits and make sure it follows the guidelines from their Core Competency training correctly.

Simple go to this link to start a Facebook fundraiser for 10.18 Strategy: https://www.facebook.com/fund/1018strategy/

AmazonSmile is a simple and free way to turn your online purchases into a way to help the mission of 10.18 Strategy to recruit, train, and support families to advocate & care for children who have been abused, neglected, or abandoned. When you shop at smile.amazon.com instead of amazon.com, you'll find the exact same low prices, vast selection, and convenient shopping experience - but Amazon will donate a portion of your purchase price to 10.18 Strategy. All donations from AmazonSmile are credited to the "Where Most Needed" and will be used to better serve the children and families that are impacted through 10.18 Strategy.

HOW TO SETUP AMAZON SMILE

Mobile App:

Open Amazon App on phone. Click menu icon (top left, 3 lines) and select "AmazonSmile". Choose 1018 Strategy as charity and ensure it's turned to "ON".

Desktop:

Visit smile.amazon.com on your desktop and follow the prompts to select 10.18 Strategy, Inc as your supported charitable organization. Always shop on amazon.smile.com every time you want to make an Amazon purchase. If you use Chrome as your internet browser, there is an extension available to ensure that whenever you go to Amazon's site, you will be on AmazonSmile. Install the AmazonSmile Chrome Extension Here

Yes! Card donation is an innovative third-party giving program that converts new, unused or partially used gift cards into cash to help vulnerable children & foster families served by 10.18 Strategy. Simply go to charitygiftcertificates.org and follow the screen prompts.

Yes! Matching your gift makes a world of difference! Double the impact of your gift through your company matching gift program! Your matching gift supports critical needs that sponsorship donations alone can’t cover such as urgent family aid, reality-based training with vital resources, and recruitment efforts.

You Can Participate in Your Company's Matching Gift Program in 2 Simple Steps:

1. Complete the Matching Gifts Form for your company

   • Forms are often available from the Human Resources department. This form may require 10.18 Strategy's tax identification number 84-4150615.

2. Send the completed formalong with your donation or receipt from your recent donation to:

Attn: Donor Processing

705B NW Melody Lane, #114

Lees Summit, MO 64063

• We will complete our portion of the form and mail it back to your employer.

If your employer is not matching yet, please consider the following:

Ask your human resources department or matching gifts coordinator to consider 10.18 Strategy as a charitable organization for the matching gifts program. He or she may want the following information:

• 10.18 Strategy, Inc is a not-for-profit organization recognized as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Donations are considered tax-deductible under section 170 of the code.

• 10.18 Strategy exists for the advocacy of children, to release them from their spiritual, economic, social, and physical poverty and enable them to become responsible, fulfilled adults.

Easily donate a self-determined percentage of your monthly revenue, and share your generosity with your customers and community. Setup is quick and easy through a QuickBooks based app called G1VE.

G1VE App Provides You the Ability To:

- Setup Automated & Flexible Donations. Increase, decrease, or pause anytime.

- Make it Cash Flow Friendly for Your Business. Percentage based donation means it’s always in budget.

- Receive a Public Profile Page. Showcase your giving to customers, strengthening your brand and aligning with your community!

4 Simple Steps to Setup:

- Login to Your QuickBooks

- Go to Apps & Search for "G1VE" & Click Get App Now

- Complete Promts to Register Business

- Choose Your Desired Percentage, Choose "10.18 Strategy", Enter Credit Card Info & Complete Registration

Simply put, a Foster Care Informed Church is a church that is AWARE of what is going on in their community related to the abuse and neglect of children. They are ENGAGED in being an active part of the community to bring Christ-centered solutions. And they are EDUCATED on how to practically serve the community in strategic and purposeful ways.

AWARE - being a church that is aware of the abuse and neglect of children, is a church that goes beyond the standard statistics and looks at how foster care directly impacts the community throughout generations. By looking at the long-term effects of the abuse and neglect of children, we become aware of the source of our community's struggle with drug addiction, crime, and injustice. We are aware that this provides us a glimpse into our communities' future condition, if we fail to engage and bring Christ-centered solutions to the vulnerable children within foster care. Becoming aware of this connection, leads us into a new level of compassion and understanding of foster care.

ENGAGED - being a church that is engaged in the care and advocacy of vulnerable children within our local community. Through partnerships and a relationship-based approach, we become engaged in bringing practical solutions from a place of peace-driven passion. By bringing awareness to our congregations of the situations surrounding abused and neglected children, we provide opportunities to the congregation to engage. By creating simple on-ramps, purposeful training, and strategic support, we enable the Believer to respond to the call of God within them to impact the lives of vulnerable children individually and corporately. As an engaged church, we understand that an organic, calling-based response will produce quality long-term and impactful results. Thereby, creating a celebratory atmosphere that motivates others to engage in community outreach.

EDUCATED - is a church that provides an opportunity for their congregation, families, leadership teams, and child care workers to become educated in the practical ways to serve the vulnerable of our community with Christ-centered solutions. By embracing a mentality of being professional minded, child-centered, peace driven, and trauma-informed we can better support families, provide more positive experiences for foster/adopt children, and show a greater appreciation of front line workers engaged in bringing about community impact. By educating our congregants on how to interact and be a voice admid the complexities of foster care, we enable them to understand and have confidence in initiating child advocacy and how to navigate broken governmental systems. In addition, they will learn new approaches to ministering to fractured individuals/families and grow in their ability, and their faith to minister outside of the four walls of the church. By educating our people, we can produce organic support and celebration for impacting the lives of vulnerable children with the heart of the Father, and a vision for His restoration and justice in their lives.

678,000 REASONS

Caring for vulnerable children is much more than a cause. IT'S A CALLING! The reality, though often unseen, is that over 678,000 vulnerable children in our country are confirmed victims of abuse, neglect, and abandonment EACH YEAR. Yet, only 22% of them will receive foster care services. Many Christians, like you, feel troubled by these reports and desire to help. The solution for these kids is strong families. Research shows the power of family in a child's life. Family is the best place for a child's physical, emotional, and spiritual development. FAMILY CHANGES EVERYTHING!

The connection between foster care and communities is surprising, even to the most experienced community leaders. Kevin Smith, a district judge who handles family court cases in the Wichita, Kansas, area stated: "So many of society's problems are directly linked to foster care outcomes, it is shocking."

10.18 Strategy exists to help you answer the call, by serving, equipping, and supporting Christian families and churches like yours. By teaching reality-based strategies, we help you and families in your congregation confidently partner with the Father amid injustice. Live out the Gospel's simplicity and give a child the most priceless gift of life-altering love...a love that holds arms wide open, with a heart exposed!

Our evidence-based recruitment program focuses on reforming HOW families are recruited into foster care. By utilizing a calling-based approach, we can move away from guilt-driven messages. Through honest and relationship-based connections, we can help families make an educated and peace-filled decision for their family.

10.18 Strategy Approaches Recruitment in 4 Specific Ways:

1. Implement Relatable Family Recruiters - Experienced foster parents will recruit families. Their first-hand stories offer positive faith-based perspectives & relatable emotions as they execute a calling-based approach.

2. Identify and Address Motives - As 10.18 recruiters portray living examples of families who have walked-out a "positive approach" to foster care, they can address the top motivators for families. Thereby activating families to care for children.

3. Identify & Address Obstacles - As 10.18 recruiters communicate with passion, facts & faith, they address top obstacles that prevent families from fostering. By giving honest & experienced answers to hard questions, we help break down barriers.

4. 10.18's Long Term Commitment to Families - 10.18's commitment to families, goes well beyond the recruitment phase. Our families will not be left alone during their foster care journey. 10.18 will train, & provide ongoing personal support to every family.

If you would like more information about the details of 10.18's Recruitment Sunday or how to implement a partnership with 10.18 Strategy, we encourage you to follow all links titled "I'm Ready for Outreach".

10.18 Strategy is a foster family-focused organization that educates, trains, and supports foster families to achieve a mentality of being professional minded, child-centered, peace driven, and trauma-informed through our exclusive training created for foster families by foster families. Our Biblically-based curriculum redefines the standard approach to foster care and gives a clear blueprint to build positive outcomes for foster families and the children in their care. We can teach families the practicalities of how to foster. However, we believe that families must possess the following three qualities organically:

The Qualities a Foster Family Must Have to do Fostering Effectively:

1. They Must Be Called to Do It - having a personal conviction that you are called is is an essential component.. This is why calling-based messages must be central to recruitment. When families respond to recruitment based on guilt vs. calling it sets up unhealthy expectations of fostering and causes families to approach fostering with a desire to "save the world," which often creates a lack of boundaries and chaos. However, families that approach fostering from a calling-based perspective with guidance and wisdom realize that Jesus is the hero of each child's story, and their role is to serve from a place of peace-driven passion.

2. Their Faith Must be in God as a Just Judge, Not the System - As foster parents encounter the injustice and brokenness of the system, they need to know that Jesus is the Judge who saw and heard what no one else did and that He will avenge the wrong. As you come face to face with the injustices that many vulnerable children in foster care experience, it is easy to become bitter and angry. Knowing how to navigate, process, and dialogue with the Lord through these emotions is central to a peace-driven foster parent that holds fast to God's plan for justice for the child's life.

3. They Must be Teachable and Willing to Learn How to Have a Voice for the Voiceless - at 10.18 Strategy, we equip individuals, churches, and leaders in the care and advocacy of foster children to have a strategic voice that influences and provides positive outcomes for children. Not a voice of timidity or fear that gets drowned out by the noise of opinion, but a voice that speaks with boldness, clarity, and authority using a Biblically-Based Strategy. Protecting, prioritizing, and maintaining a voice for the child, as a partner of the Just Judge, should be the number one priority of every foster parent, caretaker, child advocate, or support organization. If we properly recruit and train from the start, a new breed of foster families, we will propel them into their communities with a voice that effectively advocates for the interest of the children in their care. Resulting in an army of believers living their callings and purposes outside of the four walls of the church and into the community that God has called them!

Foster care is not your soul mission, but it is ours. Therefore, the primary burden of handling any response to recruitment, training, or ongoing support falls primarily to 10.18 Strategy. We encourage churches, like we encourage foster families, have peace-driven passion! Do what you feel like you are called to do, and only that! We encourage churches to engage in dialogue with us as the prayerfully & gradually take the following steps.

3 Steps to Engage in Foster Care Outreach:

1. Become a Foster Care Informed Church - see FAQ above & request your church information packet from 10.18 Strategy.

2. Review and Implement the 4 Steps to Impact - outlined at the top of this web page

a. Host a Recruitment Sunday

b. Host a Same Day Information Meeting

c. Host a Church-Wide Training

d. Create a Foster Care Outreach plan

3. Implement Your Customized Foster Care Outreach Plan - in partnership & with support from 10.18 Strategy

If you would like more information about the details of these steps or how to implement a partnership with 10.18 Strategy, we encourage you to follow all links titled "I'm Ready for Outreach".

With more than 440,000 children in full-time foster care and annual surges of over 680,000 children under the jurisdiction of child welfare agencies —and growing—our nation has a critical shortage of homes.

Children come into care for many different reasons. In 2018, 36% or 94,386 children were removed from their homes due to parental drug abuse, a 7% growth over the previous year. 163,543 children—62% of those entering care—were placed in foster care due to neglect, which often is exacerbated by parental drug use. Many state officials say the surge of children entering foster care is a direct result of the ever-increasing drug epidemic.

From 2010, the number of children who had official reports of abuse & neglect filed in the U.S. have increased from 5.9 million per year to 7.8 million per year, a 32% increase.

As a result, Child Protective Services officially investigated reports involving 3.5 million children in 2018 alone, a 2.2% decrease from 2010.

678,000 children were verified as victims of abuse & neglect in 2018 alone. However, only 146,706 of those children end up in full time foster care, less than 22%.

Despite the steady increase of over 32% in official reports of abuse and neglect, Child Protective Services has seen an overall drop by almost 14% of official cases opened since 2010.

These numbers cause our greatest fear to seem to be a likely reality, due to the inadequate number of foster homes, child-welfare investigators could potentially be hesitating to bring "at-risk children" into full-time care.

Since, 2010 child fatalities have increased by over 14%. In 2018, there were over 1,770 child fatalies nationwide. From 2010 till 2018, a staggering 14,757 children have died from abuse and neglect. 79% of the victims were under the ag​​​​​​​e of 3.

There's only 200,000 licensed foster families to provide homes to the annual surge of 687,000 children already receiving foster care services = approx. 3.4 children/ family. Of these 200,000 foster homes, 50% will stop fostering within the first year. Inadequate training and lack of support are cited as the primary reasons for quitting, not the children.

Without the revelation of God as Judge, we have no real response to the darkness and torment human beings are bringing upon other human beings. Human language is not supposed to adequately describe the things that hell has invented. Left with the age old question of why there is suffering and injustice in the world. Causing a bankruptcy in our faith and witness as we struggle to limit the power of God to the modern version of Jesus as meak, mild and timid. To go into the aspect of God’s judgement can cause us to be uncomfortable, if we think of it from an incorrect perspective that God is angry or harsh. It is this fear that causes us to tame-down the power of the gospel, and dismiss the most needed benefits of Jesus as our judge. It is actually His fierce and devoted love that causes Him to long to bring forth Justice.

Only when we have come to know Jesus as the judge will we have adequate answers for the most broken people we encounter each day, people who are crying out for Justice yet who do not know the one to whom they can direct their cry.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

God's message of comfort includes His commitment to those who suffer. Jesus wants to heal our hearts with the revelation that He is the judge, and He wants to give us truly good news for the oppressed. Reminding people of Jesus's tears without acknowledging His power to act on our behalf presents an incomplete representation of His attributes. No one can come close to explaining away God's redemptive power to heal our deepest pain.

No one, except Jesus, is worthy to bring judgement on the wrongs that have occured. The father's standards are too high when it comes to who will stand as the judge of all humanity. God desires to put a judge before us that no one can say is unsympathetic. This judge must be fully man, tempted and tested as we have been, yet uncorrupted by absolute power. He must use His authority to lift the week rather than crush them. Jesus is this Righteous Judge.

As Isaiah 42:3 says, “a bruised reed He will not break, and a faintly burning wick He will not quench; He will faithfully bring forth Justice”. As the perfect judge for humanity, Jesus will not be indiscriminate with His judgment, accidentally bringing wrath or losing his temper. He sees the struggling individual who cries out to Him as a “bruised reed” that He will not break. He does not stop being merciful in order to bring forth Justice. He does not suspend one attribution to express another. He judges righteously and justly and is perfectly merciful and kind every step of the way. Jesus’ fierceness as depicted in Isaiah 63 is 100% consistent with the God who is love itself. In fact, it is because of His great love that He fights fiercely against everything that keeps us from experiencing His love.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

We need to know that Jesus is the Judge who saw and heard what no one else did and that He will avenge the wrong. Through the heart of Jesus, we can come to understand a God who says what happened to us was significant and that someone must pay. Yet in his mercy Jesus offers himself as the solution and the recipient of the just punishment.

Knowing Jesus as our judge will not turn us into spiteful Christians who constantly speak negative words of judgment and condemnation. The exact opposite is true. When we understand that Jesus is the Judge, we realize an equally important truth… we are not! Understanding Jesus as our Judge allows us to truly comprehend forgiveness. Forgiveness is not about Jesus looking the other way, but about us trusting our case to Him. By forgiving what seems impossible to release, we can make the mercy of Jesus famous.

When we think the wrongs done to us don't matter to God, we cannot recognize our true worth. Our hearts were made to cry out, “Who will fight for us?” A cry that can often be suppressed in our human attempt to be godly. No matter how hard we try to bury that cry, it will fester like a wound unless we come to know Jesus the Judge.

*Portions taken from the book, A Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

The lingering question remains, who will fight for me?

When we believe there is no Justice and no one will take an account for what happened to us, we feel an inherent sense of worthlessness. We think if no one cares about what happened to me, then I must not be worth much at all. These feelings of worthlessness can affect even those who haven't experienced the trauma of abuse or other physical pain. The Bible says feelings of worthlessness can come on the people of God when they are not rightly taught that God takes an account for wrongs. In Jeremiah 23, the Lord urges His people not to listen to this destructive teaching that says those who despise the Lord and do wrong will somehow be blessed and have peace.

I know Jesus will bring Justice, not just because it is the right or legal thing to do, but because it is something a Just God must do. He judges because the wrong committed against his children is personal to him. When we harm one another, when the weak are crushed, when children are abused, Jesus takes it personally. God's judgment is not about punishing those who break His rules; He holds deeply the injustice His children have suffered in His heart, Isaiah 634.

*From the book, Cry for Justice by Shelley Hundley. Used with author's permission.

With more than 440,000 children in full-time foster care and annual surges of over 680,000 children under the jurisdiction of child welfare agencies —and growing—our nation has a critical shortage of homes.

Children come into care for many different reasons. In 2018, 36% or 94,386 children were removed from their homes due to parental drug abuse, a 7% growth over the previous year. 163,543 children—62% of those entering care—were placed in foster care due to neglect, which often is exacerbated by parental drug use. Many state officials say the surge of children entering foster care is a direct result of the ever-increasing drug epidemic.

There are approximately 200,000 licensed foster families to provide homes to the annual surge of 687,000 children already receiving foster care services = approx. 3.4 children per family. Of these 200,000 foster homes, 50% will stop fostering within the first year. Inadequate training and lack of support are cited as the primary reasons for quitting, NOT THE CHILDREN.

We have a faith-based emphasis because it is who we are; we are faith-filled people! Our faith has been a central part of our fostering and adoption journeys. We cannot separate our faith from our experiences because our faith gave us strength when everything else failed. Yet, it was wisdom that grounded our faith in practicality. Far too long, we have attempted to approach complex issues with either faith OR a practical approach. Our challenge is, why not both?

When we look at Nehemiah's Biblical story, we can learn some simple and profound truths. He was able to accomplish things of great magnitude and in a short amount of time (Neh 4), but how? We learn many inspiring things from this story, but the one we want to talk about here is the partnership of faith and practicality. With a sword in one hand and a hammer in another, he led a team of people that rebuilt the broken places in record time, and they did it all in the context of their family! We, too, have seen profound and supernatural things happen when faith (sword) and practical wisdom (hammer) were brought together in the context of fighting for children who come from broken places. The system is fractured and faulty. Practicality alone amid the brokenness of this reality will leave you discouraged and frustrated. Faith without works (practicality) is dead (James 2:26) and will leave you full of discouragement. There is power when we bring together the influence of both faith and practical wisdom.

10.18's recruitment program is focused on changing HOW we do recruitment of families. Moving away from guilt-driven methods and launching recruitment campaigns in churches that are calling-based. Given with relevant messages by experienced foster families who can provide positive perspectives, conviction and upfront answers to the hard questions that every potential family asks.

10.18's training program is focused on providing reality-based training for new foster families, people within their support system, and their churches. By training with 10.18's curriculum, written by foster families for foster families, on topics not traditionally included in state standardized training. At the end of this training, families will be able to confidently use all four 10.18 core competencies at the right time, in the right situations, with the right people.

10.18's support program is focused on providing ongoing support solutions for new foster families. By dedicating support teams to assist families through the complexities of licensing. Walking alongside them through a mentorship program with experienced, positive-perspective foster parents. Providing a practical and organic community of support within their local churches, friends & families.

At 10.18 Strategy, our mission and programs are built on four foundational methods of approach, without these our mission & programs would fail. They would be empty, lacking the foundational elements needed for each program to thrive. What sets 10.18 apart from other foster care organizations is not just what we are doing, but HOW we do them, it's our approach that makes a difference. Even though this sounds like a small difference it is actually huge!!! Our methods have been developed from years of feedback by foster parents, pastors, bio-families, case-management teams, and child welfare professionals. Our four methods of approach include:

Many families don't come into fostering with all of the skills necessary. So, it's 10.18's responsibility to educate, train and support foster families to obtain the competencies necessary to do fostering well.

At 10.18, we believe the following four principles best define the qualities needed for excellent foster parenting which include: professionally minded strategy, child centered focus, peace driven passion, and a trauma-informed approach. These four competencies or mentalities are vital to the success of new foster families. Which not only provides a child with a home, it provides a child with a voice and a refuge in the midst of a broken system. The result of focusing on the development of foster families who are confident in functioning in these competencies, will be a reputation that creates immediate rapport and respect between 10.18 Families and child welfare professionals. So we must first define these core competencies, train families on how to implement it, and then support those families ongoing in how to apply within their unique situations. As a result, these core competencies will also become a standard of accountability for our foster families, staff, and volunteers. Consequently, our vision to impact the lives of vulnerable children and families becomes a reality.

10.18 Strategy was formed in response to encouragement and deliberation with representatives from Missouri’s Children’s Division office in Jefferson City. They contacted us for help, we did not contact them. States have an increased need for more foster families based on three primary factors:

1. Substantial turnover, poor recruitment results and inability to consistently improve foster-family experiences

2. Restrictions on the use of group homes and placement numbers by the new Family First Prevention Services Act.

3. Child drug abuse and neglect cases have both grown by more than 7% in the past year, growing every year since 2011.

If states fail to meet the new federal guidelines outlined in the Family Fire Prevention Services Act, they are at risk of losing federal funding. Which for many states exceeds 50% of their annual budget for Child Protective Services. Now more than ever we need quality foster families.

With over 80% of our country’s victimized children being denied safety from governmental programs like foster care, our exposure to endangered children within our communities is at an all time high. It is no longer IF you will encounter a situation with an endangered child, it is WHEN. Don’t you want to know what to do when that happens? We need effective advocates to speak up for our country’s endangered children.

This training has been SPECIFICALLY CREATED FOR YOU, every day people who may have no previous experience with child endangerment. This training is about equipping you in the REALITIES of advocating for children amid broken situations. Our currriculum contributors HAVE LIVED THIS on the frontlines fighting for children in a variety of capacities! There are no theories here!

Our mission to empower advocacy is too urgent to become another child welfare organization who settles within the constraints of current systems - these children’s lives depend upon us having dedicated action within communities and we know that together, we will not fail them.

Our Properietary Advocacy Training Provides You with the Following:

- Reality-based training based on real-life stories from experienced advocates and child welfare professionals

- Practical steps on how to advocate for a child amid a broken system or situation

- Methods to prepare for the emotional demands of engaging in broken situations with endangered children

- Professional skills that enable effective advocacy, where your voice can be heard amid the noise

- Real life case studies from multiple individuals with a wide-range of experiences and perspectives

- Skills and tips on how to approach and handle difficult people

- Biblically-based approach to responding to the severe injustice you will witness

- How to minimize collateral damage to you & your family when engaging in broken situations

The beauty is that JESUS IS THE HERO OF EVERY CHILD'S STORY, so you don't have to be! Thankfully, being an advocate is not about being the hero. It's merely about walking in obedience to what you have felt called to do.

No individuals has everything they need before entering advocacy work; this is why our mission is to educate, train, and coach you to do it! We are here to teach you how, but only you can determine your why!The first step to building positive outcomes for both the child and you, is that a child-centered approach must necessitate your why.

From our experience, we have found that individuals who have contemplated and processed the following three items tend to be most successful in building positive outcomes. These items are not requirements, but suggestions on things that need considerable thought. We encourage you to discuss, pray, and weigh these items carefully. If you need someone to talk to, please contact us, and we would be happy to help!

1. Feel Called to Do It - having a personal conviction that you feel called is an essential component that will carry you thru difficult moments. Approaching advocacy from guilt or good intentions to "save the world" often creates a lack of boundaries and chaos. However, coming to the journey from a calling-based perspective tends to make room for peace, even amid an overwhelming idea. We are here to help you and your family make a peace-filled decision.

2. Your Faith in a Just God, Not a System - In advocacy of children you will encounter many broken governmental systems. One of the primary ones will be Child Protective Services. As an advocate, you will encounter the system's injustice and brokenness up close and personal. Facing these injustices can be extremely difficult when you expect the system to provide justice, but fails to do so. The system is broken, and yes, things need to improve. However, talking about the brokenness of the system can quickly become a waste of energy. We must meet these injustices with a two-fold approach, practical application of strategy, and faith in a God Who is just! We know that this topic is difficult, and the healing process is complicated. We encourage you to first ask a self retrospective question, "Am I full of anger or turmoil about the injustices I have experienced, or have I found an element of peace and trust in God despite it?" Your answer will help you determine if advocacy work is right for you in this season. As you come face-to-face with victimized children's gross injustices, it is easy to become bitter and angry. Knowing how to navigate, process, and dialogue with the Lord and others through these emotions is central to being a peace-driven advocate. We will help you learn how to be an effective advocate and how to walk it out practical, but only you can determine if you feel ready to take that emotional journey on.

3. Be Teachable and Willing to Learn - thru our advocacy training program we equip individuals, like you in the advocacy of victimized children. As you go thru your journey, you will see things you cannot unsee. You will know things that you can't unlearn. You will have opportunities to show compassion in ways that you never thought possible. There is nothing like child advocacy; it will change you; it is a beautiful journey that will transform your life and your family. But it requires you to be teachable, humble, and compassionate. The hardest of all, it will need you to set aside your own opinions to benefit another.

We understand that all of these topics are somewhat complex. Don't worry; we are here to help you through them. We will address all of them and more in our in-depth advocacy training, "Becoming a Steadfast Child-Centered Advocate." This training and many other services and resources are available to you through our Protect Kids program.

We have a Biblically-based emphasis because it is who we are; we are faith-filled people! Our Christian faith has been a central part of our advocacy journeys. We cannot separate our faith from our experiences because our faith gave us strength when everything else failed. Yet, it was wisdom that grounded our faith in practicality. Far too long, we have attempted to approach complex issues with either faith OR practicality. Our challenge is, why not both?

When we look at Nehemiah's Biblical story, we can learn some simple and profound truths. He was able to accomplish things of great magnitude and in a short amount of time (Neh 4). But how? We learn many inspiring things from this story, but the one we want to talk about here is the partnership of faith and practicality. With a sword in one hand and a hammer in another, he led a team of people that rebuilt the broken places in record time, and they did it all in the context of their family! We, too, have seen profound and supernatural things happen when faith (sword) and practical wisdom (hammer) were brought together in the context of fighting for children who come from broken places. Practicality alone amid broken situations, faulty systems, and confused societies will leave you discouraged and frustrated. Faith without works (practicality) is dead (James 2:26) and will leave you full of discouragement. There is power when we bring together the influence of both faith and practical wisdom.

The tools, resources, and ideas we provide through our organization and our Family First program come from the overflow of our faith, our own family stories, and our fostering experiences. We are unapoligetically a people of Faith, Family & Fostering!

YES!!! We have MANY curriculum currators from various roles within foster care who have been involved in developing this training. We use a lot of foster care examples because it is one of the most broken and restrictive systems to do advocacy work in. We encourage foster parents, adoptive parents, CASA Advocates, social workers, and child welfare professionals to go through the training as a majority of the topics are not taught in state standarized training programs.

Also, this training was currated from over 500 hours of collaboration with child welfare profesisonals, foster parents, social workers, adoptive parents, law enforcement, and victims of severe childhood abuse. This training has over 15 individual contributors providing you with one of the most diverse and experienced trainings ever curated for effective advocacy.

Becoming a foster or adoptive parent can feel overwhelming and intimidating to most, but it doesn't have to be. Through direct and relationship-based connections, we help you make an educated and peace-filled decision for your family. With experienced foster families, we are ready and available to answer all of your questions and assist your family in making the best decision.

Families enrolled in our Family First program will be provided with a dedicated support team to help throughout their fostering/adoption process. Including being a guide, an advocate, and a resource as you become licensed with your state. Simply put, our job is to help make it easier for you. We do not have to fill the obligations required by state agencies, as we are an independent organization whose sole mission is to serve you as you serve children! We will help you find a licensing agency, and we will work with them to provide you as smooth of a process as possible.

To request more information about fostering, please contact us, and we would be happy to help!

Yes, adopting from foster care is possible. Many choose to foster and also have the desire to adopt. As we approach this subject, we must first remember three crucial factors about adoption.

1) The Way Your Approach Adoption is Important

The desire to adopt is the heart of God within you, desiring to love a child the way He has loved you. Families stepping up to provide homes for children in need is a beautiful and redemptive thing. Adoption is on God's heart, He sets the lonely in families (Psalms 68:6), and He cares about children having families. As you consider adoption for your family, no matter what type of adoption you are considering, we urge you to examine your heart and ask why you want to do it. How you approach the topic of adoption is very important. Because adoption has nothing to do with GETTING a child, it has everything to do with GIVING your family to one.

As adoptive parents, we know what it is like to desire to adopt and put your heart out there and risk disappointment. It is a big decision. The first thing to realize is that no adoption process is easy. All of them provide challenges and frustration. Initially, we thought foster care was the most challenging type of adoption. Now that we have experienced it, we no longer agree with that idea. We are here to help you understand what it looks like to foster and/or adopt from the US foster care system. We are here to help your family make a peace-filled decision.

2. Adoption is NOT the Goal of Fostering, but it is a Potential Outcome

Fostering is about providing a loving home to a child until the courts can determine what is in the child's best interest. Reunification with their biological family will be the primary goal. As a foster parent, your role will be to provide a safe and loving home to the child, care for them, advocate for them, and support the process of reunification/restoration.

Many people falsely assume that adoption is God's only desired outcome for children in foster care. It is not. When we look at the life of Jesus as our example, we see that He is the ultimate Restorer! His ways are always to provide an opportunity for restoration. Foster care is the same. It allows biological parents to receive support and resources they need to pursue reunification with their children. As foster parents, we are not only serving the children in our homes; we are cheering on the parents to seek and receive the restoration Jesus desires for them. After the due process has been made, and IF the parent(s) are unable or unwilling to be restored to their child, they will become available for adoption.

In our introductory training, "Becoming a Steadfast Child-Centered Advocate," we will teach you practical ways to support reunification while maintaining healthy boundaries. We will also show you how to have a voice for the child whenever you have concerns. As foster parents, our primary OBJECTIVE is always to advocate and serve the child's best interest.

3) There are Many Children in Foster Care Waiting to be Adopted

There are children whose parents' rights are terminated, and the child is legally ready to be adopted. There are currently over 125,000 children available for adoption within the US foster care system. Many of these children have been waiting for years for a family to step up and adopt them. These children have many different reasons for a long-awaited adoption. Sometimes it is due to being a part of a sibling group or because of their age; sometimes, they have struggled due to severe childhood trauma or medical conditions. For many of these children, they have lost hope of being adopted into a family. If you feel called to adoption, we highly encourage you to look at the adoption profiles of children who are waiting for forever families at adoptuskids.org

To request more information about adoption, please contact us, and we would be happy to help!

Fostering and adoption can be an excellent experience for your biological children! Their compassion and their awareness of the brokenness of others grow exponentially. Many families often state that their biological children are the ones convincing them to continue opening their homes to children in need. The key to fostering or adopting beneficial to your children is to approach it with practical wisdom and boundaries. We recommend families with children to utilize the following tips when contemplating these decisions for their family:

• Be in Unity. Unity is the most critical aspect of fostering or adoption because it is not something you do by yourself. It will affect every member of the household, and it needs to be a family decision. We encourage incorporating your children into the discussion, starting around the age of six or age-appropriate for your specific child.

• Create Boundaries. Boundaries provide assurance and safety to your children that you will protect them; this is very important! We cannot sacrifice our families on the altar of good intentions. Establishing predefined boundaries as a family before fostering or adopting helps the family stay in unity and reduce chaos. One of our favorites is that "we will not take the placement of a child unless everyone in the family agrees."

• Teach as You Go. Many of the things that come up while engaging the brokeness of others are complicated. It can be challenging for your children to comprehend, mostly all at once. Creating a teaching culture that addresses things as they come up is vital to children feeling safe. It also reduces confusion and creates an open dialogue for your child to express anything that may concern them.

• Don't Make Promises. We cannot guarantee any outcomes in fostering or even adoption. It would be best to communicate with your children multiple times; "we don't know what will happen." Even if the case looks like it is going a particular direction, don't make any promises! We often say, "we will let you know on adoption day"!

• Give Visuals. Visuals are potent reminders of our words, and this is especially useful for homes with younger children. We recommend using picture boards to explain the differences between "forever family" and "children we love."

We will dive into these tips and many more in our introductory training, "Becoming a Steadfast Child-Centered Advocate," made available to you through our Family First program.

In most states, Fostering incurs no cost for the families to have background checks, training, or licensure. All expenses are absorbed by the state in which you are licensed.

Adopting a child from foster care is often funded by the state, and in most cases, there are few or no fees.

All non-specified donations are applied to "where needed most". Which is the general operation fund that provides a variety of essential needs for the betterment of victimized children and the families that serve them. Donations to 10.18 Strategy's general fund provide not only essentials, but resources necessary to accomplish our mission – including personnel, materials, buildings, and equipment. Your tax-deductible donation is stewarded by 10.18 Strategy with the utmost care and attention to maximizing every dollar to the benefit of vulnerable children and families.

We believe accountability and transparency create safety and security. So this is the pledge we make to you:

• To provide clear information on our organization's mission and how we will use your donations for the betterment of children and families

• To make our financial statements available to the public

• To use your donations for the purposes for which they were given

• To respect your privacy, keeping your personal and giving records confidential

• To respond to your inquiries promptly and with integrity

Should you have additional questions related to our organization's management and accountability thru our board of directions, please contact us by email: board@1018strategy.org

10.18 Strategy maintains board approved, documented policies and procedures related to fundraising practices, donor protections and relations, and donations.

Our Policies Include:

• Conflict of Interest Policy

• Code of Ethics / Whistleblower Policy

• Document Retention and Destruction Policy

• Compensation Policy

• Privacy Policy

• Donor Bill of Rights

Should you have additional questions related to our fundraising standard of excellence or specific policies, please contact us by email: donations@1018strategy.org