BLOOMINGTON – Open Arms Christian Ministries is partnering with City Church-for All Nations – Healing Hands Outreach Center to address the shortage of foster homes in the state of Indiana by opening a satellite office at 1917 S Walnut Street in Bloomington.
The office will be used to license and train new foster parents and provide ongoing case management to foster children placed in the homes. To commemorate the opening the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce will be conducting a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new location on March 24th at 2 p.m. Refreshments will be provided.
With grant funding, Open Arms was able to hire a Foster Care Licensing Specialist to begin the process of training and licensing new foster homes. With approximately 200,000 children entering the foster care system in the United States every year, there is a critical need for foster parents. Open Arms hopes to help bridge the gap between the number of children entering foster care in Indiana and the number of foster homes to fill the need.
“It is a big enough problem,” states Marcie Dierdorf, Open Arms Foster Care Program Director, “It requires all hands on deck.”
Open Arms Christian Ministries was founded in 1985 to serve Indiana children in the foster care
system. Open Arms is rooted in the call to love, and service found in the Christian faith, and the
services offered to children are of all backgrounds and are rooted in evidence-based best
practices.
Open Arms also operates two youth residential facilities located in Greene County. A girl’s
group home near Switz City specializes in services for females ages 10-18 and a boy’s home in
Lyons for males aged 10 to 15. These facilities offer 24-hour trauma-informed care to children
whose behavioral and emotional health challenges are placed in kindred care or in foster homes.
For more information about the ribbon cutting, how to become a foster parent, or other ways to
become involved call Open Arms at 812-659-2533, ext. 225, or go to the website at
www.openarmschristian.com,
