On Jewish Giving Day, the Summit Institute invites you to partner with us to provide double the professional support to foster families for special-needs children in times of crisis.

Summit's foster care program is responsible for foster care placements in the geographic area of Jerusalem and South regions of Israel. This includes approximately 800 foster children placed in around 550 foster families as well as 12 emergency shelter foster families who are prepared to receive any child at any time, day or night. 

Of the almost 800 children within the Summit Institute's foster care system, approximately twenty percent are defined as physically or mentally disabled. Despite the extreme and complex challenges faced by foster families with special-needs children, the Summit Institute does not receive additional provisions from the government to support and guide these families. Historically, many families fostering special needs children collapsed under the pressure and left the foster care system.

The Summit Institute launched a pilot program to provide additional supportive infrastructure and guidance to foster families with special needs children in times of crisis. Amplified support is provided for between 6 months to a year – until the crisis has been overcome and the family is able to continue to provide a supportive home on their own. This additional support prevents the collapse of the foster family that leads to so many special-needs foster children sent to out-of-community boarding schools or other institutions.

This extra support does not receive government funding. In order to continue providing critical support to foster families with special needs foster children through the end of 2017, we need your help. Just $125 provides a foster family with extra professional support from a certified social worker throughout the course of a month. If each of you commits to supporting one family for one month - we will be able to continue this critical project. Please share this campaign with your friends and followers and help us save foster families on the brink of collapse. Together, we can empower these foster families to continue to provide special needs foster children with a supportive and loving home.