Kinship Care Day at the Capitol 2021
On April 20th, join The Sisters of Charity Foundation of South Carolina Kinship Advisory Council for Kinship Care Day at the Capital 2021 to raise awareness about the challenges faced by kinship care families.
The more than 20 South Carolina organizations serving kinship families and youth in foster care will come together to advocate for kinship care focused legislation.
Call to Action
Contact your SC House of Representative and ask them to support kinship caregivers and pass S.222.
What Does This Bill Do?
- S. 222 (sponsored by Senators Shealy, McLeod, Hutto, Jackson, Matthews, and Gustafson and endorsed by the Joint Citizens and Legislative Committee on Children)
- Seeks to define fictive kin eligibility for licensing as a kinship foster parent
- Gives more caregivers receive critical support and resources
- Ensures child’s safety and well-being
How Do I Find My SC Representative?
To find your legislator from the state house website follow these steps:
- Visit https://www.scstatehouse.gov
- On the bottom left of the page, there is a small brown search box labeled “Find Your Legislators”
- Type in your home address, city, and zip code
- Click “Find Legislators”
- Click on “Your South Carolina State Representative” to find their phone number or click “send message”.
What Do I Say?
Here is some suggested messaging. Feel free to use your own personal experience as a caregiver or working with caregivers in your message!
- More than 69,000 children rely on the care of grandparents, extended family members, and family friends. As a kinship caregiver, I support legislation like S. 222 that helps children maintain stable, healthy relationships with fictive kin!
- Kinship care helps to maintain stable, healthy relationships with fictive kin and provide a safe, stable environment for the child. S. 222 allows more caregivers to receive critical support and resources to ensure children in kinship care are safe. As a constituent, please vote “yes” on kinship friendly legislation!
- Often referred to as relative caregiving and is a long-standing practice in our state. S. 222 allows kinship caregivers to apply for foster parent licensure and become a licensed kinship foster parent. Please support South Carolina’s kinship caregivers!
- Providing a safe, stable environment for youth helps to address emotional and mental health while helping to heal the impacts of trauma. Kinship and fictive caregivers (usually family friends, church members or other adults close to a family) provide a safe place for youth in crisis. Please support legislation like S. 222 that allows caregivers to become licensed by DSS and receive additional support as they raise youth in their care.
2018 Kinship Care at the Capitol
HALOS kinship caregivers attending the first Kinship Care at the Capitol, a day which honored and uplifted kinship caregivers across our state, brought together government officials, organizations, and kinship caregivers themselves to show the importance of a collective voice.
Share on Social!
Click below to download graphics to share on social and show your support for South Carolina's kinship caregivers on April 20th.
