BCAT stands for: Brookwood Child Advocacy Team, and we desire to have a thriving and well-supported foster care community in our church and the surrounding area. Our mission is to facilitate the protection, empowerment, and restoration of children and families through steadfast prayer and strategic activity.
As disciples of Christ, we have been given a mandate to serve and support the most vulnerable in our community. When James stated that “true religion” is to care for widows and orphans, he wasn’t giving us an exhaustive list, but an indicative one. The people of God are to care for those who cannot care for themselves and be a voice for the one who has no voice.
Here at Brookwood, we have several families who have answered this call by serving as foster families for children displaced from their homes due to maltreatment. This work is very challenging and cannot be successfully sustained without consistent support from the church as a whole. The level of sacrifice and disruption experienced by these families goes largely unnoticed, but is essential to the safety and restoration of a wounded child. While not everyone is called to foster, everyone is called to help those who do.
There are many ways you can support our foster families:
Assists a specific foster family through monthly meal delivery, home projects, childcare/respite care, transportation, child mentorship, etc. Each member of the team chooses only one of the optional avenues of service. This is an ongoing volunteer role.
Occasionally, a foster family from our church or community encounters a special need such as furniture delivery, simple household repairs, or minor construction projects. This is a spontaneous (as-needed) volunteer role.
Occasionally our help is requested by DCFS, local non-profits that serve the foster care community, or by foster families directly. With the support of our “Special Projects” team and our deacon body, we have been able to meet those needs, extending the love of Christ in the process. In 2020, some of our deacons delivered a bed to a birth mother awaiting the return of her child. When foster children are sent back home, often their return can be delayed due to a lack of appropriate accommodations. Their labor of love was much appreciated. We also sent a team to move furniture into a donated apartment that will be home to a young lady who is aging out of the foster care system.
This effort was in partnership with the local non-profit Faith and Fostering.
The Family Support Team sometimes needs an extra set of hands to prepare or pick up and deliver a meal to our foster families. These meals are sometimes prepared, but can also be ordered for delivery directly to the foster home. This is a once per quarter volunteer role.
Foster parents need an occasional break from the stresses associated with providing a home for children from difficult places. This may be a simple two-hour slot for a mom to go grocery shopping or it could be an overnight stay while a couple gets away for the weekend. This can be a regular (consistent) volunteer role or a sporadic offer of assistance.
There are times when a foster child is in need of physical, occupational, or speech therapy, but the arrangements with the State have not yet materialized. This same scenario often exists when academic tutoring is needed. This is a regular and/or occasional volunteer role based on the needs expressed by the foster parents.
The work of a foster family is very difficult and the role of prayer can mean the difference between sustaining or suspending a placement. Acts of encouragement (such as notes) are also essential to the well-being of the family. This is an ongoing volunteer role.
To fulfill one of these support roles, or if you have any questions or need additional information, contact our lead volunteer, Melinda Wallace, below.
Application for Assistance:
Online/Other resources:
Our Foster Families
The Parker Family
The Parker Family
Miles and Shelbi Parker have been married for nine years and have three birth children—Maryn (7), Witt (6), and Briggs (3). Needless to say, they are a busy (and noisy) bunch. But when they sensed God calling them to open their home to children in foster care, they stretched their hearts and their home to make room for one more. They were certified in May of 2023 and received their first placement in June. Baby K came to them straight from the hospital after his birth and remains in their care (as of August, 2023).
The Meek Family
The Meek Family
Justin and Jamie Meek have been part of our Brookwood church family for about three years. They have two biological children, Emma and Kaden. In 2021, Jamie felt that God was calling their family into the ministry of foster care. Initially, she argued with the Lord because she had never planned for her life to take this new direction, but eventually Jamie surrendered her will to God and put her “yes” on the table. Justin had originally leaned toward adoption, but he and Jamie decided to train for foster care and trust God with the details of their future. The Meeks received their official certification as a foster home in January of this year (2023). They are currently caring for a five-year-old boy who has been in their home a little over a month (as of August, 2023). Jamie’s words say it best, “I am so thankful God chose unworthy servants like myself and Justin to do something so special and be able to share this gift with our two children.”
The Oliver Family
The Oliver Family
Ben and Tori Oliver hit the ground running when they entered the world of foster care. They have three birth children—Kailyn, Carson, and Ethan, who are actively involved in caring for their foster siblings. The Oliver home has been a hub of ministry for a very long time. Neighborhood kids and teenage friends know they are always welcome and will enjoy lots of laughter if they visit in this home. Although they have technically become a foster home this past year, the Olivers have previously opened their home to extended family members who were in need of a safe and loving place to live.
After providing a teenage girl with a safe and loving home for five months, the Olivers are currently caring for two babies, a precious girl who is eight months (and the official baby of the Student ministry) and a little boy who is three and a half months old. The Olivers are an embodiment of Christ as they make daily personal sacrifices in order to love the vulnerable children who have been displaced from their families—even if only for a season. May their tribe increase!
The Paulk Family
The Paulk Family
Ryan and Shelly Paulk have two birth children—Paisley (13) and Easton (9). After sensing God’s call to adoption, they began the process by becoming foster parents. The Paulks were officially certified in November 2021. Very early in this journey, they discovered the pain that is so often associated with temporary nature of fostering. Though they loved and lost, they continued to seek God’s direction as to how they were to move forward in this calling. It wasn’t long before a sweet four-week-old baby boy was placed in their home and quickly found his way into their hearts. Baby J has been with them for over a year now and is likely to be adopted in the coming months.
The Shurling Family
The Shurling
Family
Travis and Melissa Shurling became certified foster parents in August of 2021. Desiring to serve in humility, they told very few people of their involvement in foster care. In addition to the little ones they have temporarily welcomed into their home, Travis and Melissa have a birth son, Max, who turns twelve in September (2023). They have been committed to providing a loving environment for children who need a safe haven while their birth families do the things necessary for their children to return home. They have also provided respite care for other foster families in the area. They welcomed Baby H into their hearts forever and into their home for six months. Goodbyes are typically hard no matter the circumstances, and this was no exception. Over the past year and a half, the Shurlings have welcomed two babies into their home. Baby S was with them for 364 days and his departure continues to be a challenge for Travis, Melissa, and Max. Meanwhile, Baby M has been with them for over 10 months and is a bright spot in their family.
The Lewing Family
The Lewing Family
The Lewings are our newest foster family candidates. They only have a couple of details to wrap up before theirs will become a certified foster home. They plan to begin this journey by offering respite care for newborns, a support role that is essential to preserving placements and preventing the additional trauma experienced by children who endure multiple placement changes. This is especially true for newborns and infants who are establishing lifelong patterns of attachment, trust and security based on the consistency of care provided from birth to two years old. We are grateful that the Lewings are planning to fulfill this unique role in the foster care community.
The Beauty of Adoption
The Barrington Family
The Barrington Family
In the four years since they were certified , thirteen foster children have slept under their Barrington roof. John and Hollie feel compelled to adopt through the foster care system, a calling that carries with it great emotional risk to each member of the family. Often children come into care as an adoptive placement and foster families open their homes and hearts to the possibility of permanency. But in the world of fostering, things can change in an instant, giving little or no warning that an unexpected “goodbye” is imminent. The Barringtons have experienced this pain and have continued to take the risk, knowing that this work is a graphic illustration of the gospel. We are thankful for the Barrington bunch.
UPDATE: The Barringtons have grown from four to six. After fostering Dawson and Justin for over two years, the boys were officially adopted on January 11, 2023. They are not only beautiful additions to the Barrington home but also to the Brookwood family. Welcome Dawson Allen Barrington and Justin Joe Barrington.
The Brock Family
The Brock Family
Carrie and Dusty Brock have a Christ-like heart for children from hard places. During the seven years they have been fostering, the Brocks have provided a safe haven of love and stability for ten children. Among those ten placements was one little girl, Larissa, who found her forever home with Carrie and Dusty. After Larissa’s adoption, the Brocks have continued to open their home to additional foster placements. Their lives are a picture of the Kingdom of Heaven where God has adopted many children into his family…and yet there is room (Luke 14:22).