Faith-Based Volunteers
Purpose: To involve faith-based organizations and individuals of faith in the mission of Muskingum County Children Services by interacting voluntarily with our family members to help in stopping the cycle of abuse and neglect.
Agency employees are paid to work with the family, but if a volunteer shows that they care enough to invest their time and talents into our families (basically sharing the same message as the caseworker) the likelihood for change should be enhanced.
Faith-Based Mission Statement
Our faith-based community partners will collaborate with Muskingum County Children Services to provide encouragement for our social workers, to better meet the needs of our children and families, and to integrate families within our community to strengthen, nurture, and form lasting bonds with our caseload families through personal involvement to positively impact the victims of abuse and neglect which are our most precious resource: CHILDREN.
Possible faith-based collaborative services:
- Recruiting foster/adoptive parents (higher level of commitment)
- Parenting services: parenting, nutrition, "Family Stability Worker-like services"
- Mentoring by example: life coaches, one-on-one (aka Big Brothers/Big Sisters - for parents as well as children)
- Training about the value of human life - dignity- to gain self-respect
- Mother's Club: provide coupons for babysitting to provide time for parents to handle responsibilities or for time away from child care duties
- Child care during mentoring
- Loosely structured "worship" services with food to get to know families and build natural relationships without the pressure of formal worship service expectations (Salvation Army style) Caution: Be careful not to "push" church on people
- After school program
- IEP training for parents at a neutral site (away from the church)
- Special events/outreaches - churches provide meals/etc for events
- Assistance with food/consumables/toiletries/etc. at the end of the month when resources are limited/gone
- Adopt-a Family and use caseworker visit the first time to deliver food/consumables/toiletries/etc.
- Clothing bank as an open door to mentoring
- Financial/budget counseling
- Coupon clearing house
- Transportation
- Monitoring child/family visits
- Tutoring
- Unofficial CASA/Guardian Ad Litem that attends case reviews/SARs/Court hearings to support families
- Verbal support/lobbying/levy/etc. including letters to the editor monthly to show support for agency initiatives
- Avondale Youth Center possibilities
