Bethany Christian Services Receives $60,000 Two-Year Grant to Support Youth Aging Out of Foster Care in Southeast Michigan

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. – Bethany Christian Services was recently awarded a $60,000 two-year grant from The Community Foundation of Southeast Michigan to strengthen and expand support networks for youth aging out of foster care in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties.

Bethany of Southeast Michigan is committed to serving youth aging out of foster care through its Independent Living (IL) program. This program exists to provide support and coaching to youth aging out of foster care who are losing access to the resources they received in the system. Bethany accomplishes this by pairing youth with approved adult providers willing to house them and guide them on practical steps toward their goals of achieving independence. Foster youth are more likely to experience ongoing behavioral, mental, and physical health issues, housing challenges and homelessness, employment and academic difficulties, early parenthood, incarceration, and other hardships.

The grant funding will allow Bethany of Southeast Michigan to increase the number of possible providers, enhance Bethany’s training to providers to equip them for success, and increase housing placements for youth in Southeast Michigan.

“Transitioning into adulthood is difficult for everyone,” said Tarsha Gale, branch director for Bethany Christian Services in Southeast Michigan. “We want to enable all of these teens who are leaving the foster care system to have the best chance at succeeding through developing skills and relationships. The first step to making that happen is finding and training qualified community members who want to make a difference in these kids' lives.”

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About Bethany Christian Services Bethany is an international Christian nonprofit that is changing the world through family. For the past 80 years, Bethany has demonstrated the love and compassion of Jesus by strengthening and preserving families, finding new families for children who need them, and supporting refugees and immigrants who have fled danger, because everyone deserves to be safe, loved, and connected.

The Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan is a full-service philanthropic organization leading the way to positive change in our region. As a permanent community endowment built by gifts from thousands of individuals and organizations, the Foundation supports a wide variety of activities benefiting education, arts and culture, health, human services, community development, and civic affairs. Since its inception, the Foundation has distributed more than $1.1 billion through more than 74,000 grants to nonprofit organizations throughout Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Monroe, Washtenaw, St. Clair, and Livingston counties. For more information, please visit www.cfsem.org.