The Lynne Witkin/CPFA Scholarship

Concerned Persons for Adoption

Lynne Witkin was a social worker, adoptive parent and volunteer advocate for adoption. She recognized the need for an annual gathering of professionals and parents and in 1979, pioneered New Jersey’s first “Let’s Talk Adoption” Conference. Lynne also served as president of Concerned Persons for Adoption, the adoptive parent support group which has continued to coordinate this conference since her death.

This scholarship is offered in the hope of helping and encouraging qualified social work majors who are interested in pursuing a career in the area of adoption/child welfare. There are currently over a half million children in the U.S. in foster care. More than 100,000 of these are awaiting adoptive parents. There is a critical need for caring, capable social workers to enter the field of child welfare - protective services, foster care, adoption, post-adoption services and the like, especially at this time in New Jersey.

Scholarship winner will be notified by June 1, 2021.

We are offering one $1,000 scholarship

To apply for this scholarship, click on the link here:

 

 

 

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Charitable Donations to Support Adoption and Foster Care

Starting in the early stages of the pandemic, we at Concerned Persons for Adoption have had to cancel many events and move others online, and as we now find ourselves in what has become a time of triple crisis (Coronavirus, economic recession, and racial tensions), we wanted to do more to help children. Therefore, the Board of Directors and Executive Board decided to make a $500 donation to each of two organizations that work with adopted and foster children. These children's fears and uncertainties have likely increased exponentially in recent months given their separation from their families of birth, members of whom may be sick or struggling financially.

One of the donations was made to The Center for Adoption Support and Education (C.A.S.E.). Their CEO, Debbie Riley, is a past keynote speaker at our "Let’s Talk Adoption"^sm Conference. C.A.S.E. offers counseling services (both telehealth and in-person) for adoptive families, training programs for professionals, and many educational opportunities for parents through webinars. For more information on C.A.S.E., visit their website at www.adoptionsupport.org. They are located at 3919 National Drive, Suite 200, Burtonsville, MD 20866.

The other donation was made locally to Roots and Wings, based in Denville, New Jersey. Roots and Wings provides young adults who age out of New Jersey’s foster care system with safe housing, case management, education, counseling, and life skills in order to empower them toward self-sufficiency. In this time of triple crisis, it truly must be a daunting task to suddenly be on your own as an independent young person with no immediate family for support. For more information on Roots and Wings, visit their website at www.rootsandwingsnj.org. They are located at 75 Bloomfield Ave, Suite 303, Denville, NJ 07834.

 

 

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