Wayfinder Family Services

Founded in 1993, the California Institute of Health and Social Services is an agency dedicated to decrease the number of children in out-of-home care locations and improve services provided to at-risk youths and adults. The agency serves communities in Los Angles and its surrounding areas. It has served more than 2,000 families in Los Angeles and San Bernardino and Lancaster counties in California. Its Children's Way foster family agency provides safe homes for children who have been abused and neglected. The California Institute of Health and Social Services Family Way Home Services division serves individuals with developmental disabilities between the ages of 18 and 62.

Bienvenidos Foster Family Agency, located in West Covina, Calif., is a division of Bienvenidos Children's Center, a private nonprofit child care and family agency. Since 1988, BFFA has been uniting foster families with children in need. The program is licensed by the California Juvenile Dependency Court and child protective service agencies for foster care for the children they place with BFFA. The children come from various backgrounds, including victims of physical and emotional abuse and abandoned or neglected. Foster parents are provided information about the children's care needs and their birth family's history. BFFA social workers, foster parents and birth parents work along with the county social worker to access resources, coordinate services and create an individualized treatment plan for each child. The social workers also provide ideas and suggestions about care, nutrition, cultural and behavioral needs of the children.