Foster Care Foundation Helps More With Less : Services: Orangewood organization has seen public donations drop as the number of troubled or abused youths in need of aid has increased.

By DAVID A. AVILA

Jan. 3, 1993 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

As William G. Steiner walks along the corridors of the Orangewood Children’s Home, each room tells a different story.

Police investigators, lawyers and social psychologists fill one room, physicians and nurses another, and parents and volunteers crowd still another.

But children, foster children, are the common denominator of each of the rooms.

In the seven years since the public-private Orangewood Children’s Foundation was created to cater to the needs of abused or troubled children, the number of youngsters passing through the Orangewood facility has slowly and almost steadily increased.

A population boom, the recession and an increased awareness of child abuse are responsible, said Steiner, the foundation’s director.

“These are beautiful children and it’s horrible to think how some of them have been physically or sexually abused,” Steiner said. “We have a child who was sexually abused at the age of 2 months.”

Other factors contributing to the growing need for foster care are drug abuse, single parents unable to care for their children and unwanted pregnancies among teen-agers, Steiner said.

“There were a couple of years when the number of kids decreased,” Steiner said, but “the need for more foster homes is growing while the amount of money donated has dropped off.”

Last year, the foundation, a tax-supported agency that also relies heavily on private contributions, has seen donations from the public decline dramatically, while the number of children needing the foundation’s placement services has grown. Total charitable donations in 1992 were down $584,000, or 28.2%, from the year before, which also registered a drop of $258,000, or 11.1%.

“The recession has been especially hard on our ability to raise funds,” Steiner said. “Even though we reached our (lowered) goal for (the) year, we still are far short from the previous two years.”

The recession has not only hurt their fund-raising abilities, but has increased the number of children passing through Orangewood.

“About two weeks ago, a baby no more than 12 hours old was left in a bloody bedsheet by the mother because she felt she had to go to work,” Steiner said. “She was worried about keeping her job.”

The economic pressure being felt by countless families in the county is more devastating in families headed by single mothers, or those where there are teen-age parents or drug users.

“Those factors translate to increased victimization of children,” Steiner said. “In the past six months, six children died from child abuse in Orange County.

“There are many families without support systems or extended families to help take care of the children like in the past. Both parents have to work and the children are left alone.”

Steiner also said financial depression, alcoholism, the holidays and loneliness all translate into domestic violence.

“When the problems surface, that’s where we come in,” Steiner said. “Between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we took in more than 3,000 children.”

The foundation serves as the umbrella organization for foster children, and as a temporary shelter for children until authorities decide where the child should be placed.

In 1992, more than 30,000 children passed through the Orangewood facility. Juvenile Court Judge Robert E. Thomas said that typically more than 40% of the children are returned to their parents. Another 12% are sent to relatives who agree to care for the child; 18% are transferred to group homes like Florence Crittenton Services of Orange County; and 30% will be assigned to foster homes in Orange County.

“Children are best cared for by their parents, but the safety of the child is the overriding concern when making a decision,” Thomas said.

Bob Griffith, chief deputy director for the county’s Social Services Agency, said the number of foster homes has dropped dramatically for a number of reasons over the past three years.

“We don’t have anywhere near the number of foster families needed for the kids that have to go through the system,” said Griffith, who blames the economic recession for the shortfall.

Griffith said there are 600 foster families, but an additional 200 are needed to keep pace with the increase in foster children in the county.

Judy Tanasse, a program manager for social services, said that most of the children in the foster care system are representative of the county population.

“Many people are under the impression that foster children are mainly Hispanic and black children. But there are more Anglo children in foster care than all of the others,” Tanasse said.

Steiner agrees that myth surrounds the ethnicity of foster children, but he also acknowledges a shortage of Latino and black foster families.

“More Anglo children come through the system, but there is a need for foster parents of different cultural backgrounds,” Steiner said. “Hispanic, Vietnamese and black families are sorely needed as foster parents.”

Skip Block, a program manager for the children’s services division of the county’s Social Service Agency, said applying for a license to be a foster family is relatively easy.

“We do a background check and a . . . home study where we ask for the floor plan,” Block said.

The licensing department also looks into the family’s health and lifestyle as a means to decide where the children would be better suited, Block said. He also said officials try to place children where they are more culturally comfortable.

“And we look for families that will accept groups, so we can keep brothers and sisters together,” Block said.

Many of the foster children are escaping homes where violence, neglect and drug abuse were common and they need special attention.

Babies born addicted to drugs are becoming increasingly common and require families with medical knowledge.

“We need families who are willing to go through special training where they would meet with a physician to learn (about specialized) equipment and the child’s medical needs,” Block said.

Block said families who care for children with special medical needs receive up to $1,163 a month. The basic subsidy for children ranges from $329 to $508 per month, depending on the child’s age.

“We can license a family to care for up to six children at a time, but we keep the number down to provide quality time for the children,” Block said. “They have already gone through so much deprivation.”

Steiner said it’s important that these children are given as much attention as possible to stop the cycle of child abuse that affects more than 60% of the foster children.

“If they aren’t cared for, they can become abusive parents themselves, welfare-dependent or end up in jail,” Steiner said. “Several studies show that many of our homeless come from children from the foster care system who arrive too late to be helped.

“We have to put an end to the cycle and invest in these children.”

INS, OUTS OF FOSTER CARE Foster Care Licensing Individuals who seek to provide a foster home are required to meet the following standards: * Live in Orange County. * Undergo a brief background check, including a fingerprint check. * Must not be a relative of the foster child. * Submit a floor plan of the home to be analyzed for fire hazards. * Take classes in first aid, CPR and in-service training with medical equipment for children with specific medical needs. * Receive social service workers in the applicant’s home for an evaluation of the cultural background of the family. Reimbursements, Financial Help Foster parents also receive financial assistance. * Families with one foster child are paid $329 to $508 per month depending on age and needs of the particular child. * Children with special medical needs--such as babies born addicted to drugs, heart problems, AIDS and other maladies--receive up to $1,163 a month. * Initial clothing allowance for each child, depending on age, is $195 to $263. * Replacement clothing allowance is $130 to $180 per month depending on the child’s needs and age. For more information about how to become a foster parent, call (714) 937-2230. Source: Foster Care Licensing