January 2008

Time:	All day event
Summary:	New Year's Day
Description:	January 1

Time:	12:00 AM - 3:00 AM
Location:	2320 N. 20th St. Phx., Az. 85006
Summary:	Independent Living Seminar

Time:	1:30 AM - 3:00 AM
Location:	2320 N. 20th St. Phx. 85006
Summary:	Adoption or Guardianship: What’s the Difference?
Description:	This 90 minute training is designed to help families make informed decisions when considering the possibility of adoption or permanent guardianship. Child care and a meal will be provided at this training! To register please call Corina Aguilar at 602-863-0799 x190.

Time:	4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Location:	Lodestar Family Connection Center located @ 2320 N. 20th St. Phoenix, Az. Training Room A
Summary:	Foster Parent Support Group
Description:	This is an ongoing parent support group for foster parents. Child care will be provided.

Time:	1:00 AM - 3:00 AM
Location:	2320 N. 20th St. Phx 85006
Summary:	What Is It Like To Be a Foster Child with Shannon Clayton
Description:	While we have all received training on the realities of being a foster child, nothing can get us closer to understanding than listening to someone who has experienced it themselves. Shannon Clayton will be here to share her story of being in foster care and offer her recommendations to the families who have foster children in their homes. Registration is required. Please call Mike at 602-930-4451 or email mweddle@lodestarfcc.org to register.

Time:	1:00 AM - 3:00 AM
Location:	2320 N. 20th St Phx 85006
Summary:	Meet Arizona’s Children- Adoption
Description:	The Lodestar Family Connections Center is partnering with DES to offer Meet Arizona's Children. This is an opportunity for foster families to get involved in the placement process at an earlier stage. Families that attend will see video presentations of children who are currently looking for placement and case managers or caregivers are there to answer your questions. Families can then fill out a form so that the child's case manager is notified directly that they are interested in more information or potentially taking placement of that child. The children presented will have current placement in a group home or shelter and DES is looking for a foster home. These children all still have a case plan of reunification, and are not legally free for adoption. If you are a licensed foster parent with room for a child or children in your home, then please call Mike at 602-930-4451 or email mweddle@lodestarfcc.org to register to attend. Limited child care will be available! Registration is required and space is limited so call soon!

Time:	12:45 AM - 3:00 AM
Location:	2320 N. 20th St. Phx 85006
Summary:	Stepping Stones- Post Placement Workshop Series: For Parents of children 6 – tweens.
Description:	This group is specially designed for families that have recently (in the past year) taken placement of a child through adoption, foster care, kinship, or guardianship. Topics include: Child development, Grief & Loss, Attachment, & Discipline. There is no cost to the family and dinner and childcare (for children 7 and younger) are provided. There is a parent group and a youth group (for children 8 and older). We request that families attend all four sessions which will be every Wednesday from January 16th through February 6th. Families will earn 9 hours of advanced training for completing the series. Registration is required. For additional information/registration, please contact Salvador Pastrana at 602-930-4443.

Time:	9:00 PM - 11:00 PM
Location:	Lodestar Family Connection Center located @ 2320 N. 20th St. Phoenix, Az. Training Room A
Summary:	Adoptive Parent Support Group
Description:	This is an ongoing parent support group for parents who have adopted older children. Registration is required. Contact Salvador at 602-930-4443.

Time:	All day event
Summary:	Martin Luther King Jr.
Description:	3rd Monday of January

Time:	1:00 AM - 3:00 AM
Location:	2320 N. 20th St Phx 85006
Summary:	Creating a Life Book for your child, Instructor: Celeste Soong-Tang
Description:	A lifebook is a treasure for any child, but especially for children who are adopted or in foster care. It is a tool to help a child know they are special, but that in many ways they are very much like their friends or classmates. A lifebook will help them build their self-esteem, self-awareness and prepare them for their future, whatever that may be. If you have the desire to create a lifebook for a child in your home but don't know where to start you will have the opportunity to start this treasured project on January 28, 2008 from 6pm - 8pm. $35 materials fee will include a small album and supplies needed to start a lifebook. Bring 24-36 photos of your child. These photos will help tell your child's life story. They might include a photo of your child, activities your child has been involved in, your child with their friends or pets, their family, their neighborhood or their favorite things. You may even bring copies (they must be a maximum size of 4.5"x6.5") of a birth certificate, adoption papers, or other important documents. Please include your email address when registering for this class so that we may send you further instructions. Please call Mike @ 602-930-4451 or email mweddle@lodestarfcc.org to register.