Articles Tagged SWAN, page 4

• SWAN Affiliates Invited to Join SWAN Farm Show Exhibit

  The 104^th Pennsylvania Farm Show will take place January 4 - 11, 2020 at the Farm Show Complex and Expo Center.  The Farm Show is attended by more than 100,000 people each year and offers a unique opportunity to recruit foster and adoptive families.  SWAN will have a display, and OCYF invites all SWAN affiliates to join in staffing the booth each day.

  Posted on December 13th, 2019

• Love Builds a Happy, "Starr-Filled" Home

  No matter how a family is built, love is the foundation. And in the home of Tim and Renae Starr, there is plenty of love to go around. At the 2019 Pennsylvania Permanency Conference, Tim and Renae – and their six children – took the stage to accept a Permanent Family Recognition Award from the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, Office of Children, Youth and Families. The scene brought tears to the eyes of many audience members.

  Posted on December 5th, 2019

• Juvenile Justice Week: JCJC Collaboration Strengthens Joint Training

  As Juvenile Justice Week (October 6 – 12, 2019) is recognized in Pennsylvania, a collaborative training workgroup is taking a joint training titled Shared Case Responsibility: Maximizing Quality of Care for Children & Youth in the Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice Systems into the final stretch of development. This group is comprised of SWAN prime contract staff and professionals from the Juvenile Court Judges’ Commission (JCJC).

  Posted on October 16th, 2019

• Lehigh County Foster Children Picnic Heats Up the Fun

  Despite the heat on July 19, nearly 100 children enjoyed the Fun Day Picnic, planned and hosted by Lehigh County Children, Youth and Family Services. Children of all ages attended, including those in out-of-home placement, children from other counties in local foster homes, Valley Youth House residents, and foster families’ biological children. The “hottest” features were a DJ, pizza, and a photo booth, all of which were donated or discounted.

  Posted on October 1st, 2019

• In Tribute: Tonya Hottenstein, SWAN Helpline Lead Coordinator

  The SWAN Prime Contractor is profoundly saddened by the death of SWAN Helpline Lead Coordinator Tonya Hottenstein, who passed away on September 12 in Hershey, Pennsylvania. A 20-year employee of the Central Susquehanna Intermediate Unit, Tonya’s impact on adoptive families was widespread and fueled by her passion for serving others, her personal advocacy on behalf of woman and children, and her deep reserve of love and caring for SWAN Helpline callers and colleagues.

  Posted on October 1st, 2019

• Proposals Invited for Annual Permanency Conference

  The Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, Office of Children, Youth and Families; the Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network; and Independent Living Services invites interested parties to submit workshop proposals for the 28th Annual Pennsylvania Permanency Conference. The submission deadline is October 25. The conference will be held June 17–19, 2020 at Kalahari Resorts and Conventions in Pocono Manor, Pennsylvania.

  Posted on October 1st, 2019

• IL Retreat Promotes Connection and Permanency

  Each year, the Independent Living Project organizes a retreat for older youth, which is held in August at the University of Pittsburgh – Johnstown campus. This year, the program featured a multitude of events, including sports, crafts, cooking, and many more activities to promote teambuilding and connection for the youth who attend the event.

  Posted on September 13th, 2019

• Educator Provides Permanency to Student Sibling Set

  It takes a village to raise a child, as the saying goes, and in the best-case scenarios, children and youth who seek permanency resources need look no further than their own village. Debbie Hiller represents a unique subset of this village: teachers and educational professionals. Recently, Ms. Hiller took some time to talk about the experience and process of adopting her three children.

  Posted on September 11th, 2019

• SWAN Permanency Toolkit Released

  The Statewide Adoption and Permanency Network (SWAN) is pleased to announce the release of the web-based SWAN Permanency Toolkit, an online resource guide about adoption and permanency practices in PA.  In it, you will find permanency-related topics such as the SWAN units of service and benchmarks, online trainings, statistics about children in out-of-home care, relevant foster care and adoption laws and bulletins and regulations issued by the Department of Human Services, Office of Children, Youth ...

  Posted on May 1st, 2017

• SWAN Post-Permanency Video

  Diakon/FDR’s video about SWAN Post-Permanency services features families sharing their stories about how the services impacted their lives.  This video is available on the SWAN prime contract website at http://www.diakon-swan.org/postpermanency/ at the bottom of the page.

  The video will help families learn more about SWAN Post-Permanency services. Affiliates can use the video to highlight services available throughout the permanency process, including during resource family training.

  The video is the ...

  Posted on August 27th, 2015

• Two Ways to Contact Helpline

  Helpline is the single point of contact for families to access SWAN Post-Permanency services at 1-800-585-7926 (SWAN).

  Now, in addition to phone contact during normal business hours, families can also contact the Helpline during non-business hours by email at SWANHelpline@diakon-swan.org.  Email inquiries are answered promptly and can help families access needed services during non-traditional working hours.

  During normal business hours, Helpline staff continues to assist families, lets them know if they are eligible ...

  Posted on August 27th, 2015