DPSS Annual Report 24_25 FLIP v16_compressed

Children’s Services Division

Tierra Coward provides the loving, steady, nurturing care that helped a young child flourish. When the child entered her home facing de velopmental delays, behavioral challenges and difficulty commu nicating, Coward responded with patience and consistency. The child is now speaking clear ly, potty trained, building healthy habits and getting along with sib lings. School staff report growing confidence and positive behav ior in the child. Coward manages every appointment and visit with care and works closely with service providers to ensure the child feels heard and supported. “This makes me feel good, to be able to provide a good foster home,” Coward said, adding that fostering a child has always been a part of her personal story. “My mom worked in a group home, and I used to go with her. I would sit there thinking, I want to do this,” she said. “For me, fostering feels natural. It’s part of who I am.” Tierra Coward: “Fostering…It’s Part of Who I am”

FOSTER PARENTS OF THE YEAR: A Shelter From the Storm

Riverside County’s foster care system relies on nearly 1,300 foster parents who open their homes and their lives to chil dren who cannot safely remain with their families due to abuse or neglect. When possible, child welfare partners work to stabilize households and reunite chil dren in foster care with their families and communities. The temporary role foster parents serve is vital to this process of reunification. Foster parents can also be relatives or close family friends who take in a child with little notice. Children’s Services is strengthening that path by expanding kinship placement to preserve children’s connections with their own commu nities, schools, friends and family. The vision is clear: at least 75 percent of all youth in care placed with kin, where identity and belonging can remain intact.

dren cannot be placed with relatives or need specialized support. The partner ship of community members remains vital to the well-being of children who need a haven of hope. Foster parents do far more than pro vide shelter. They meet children’s basic needs, advocate for services, maintain family connections and work with social workers to support healing. They walk alongside children through fear and un certainty, often becoming the steady presence that helps them move forward. Riverside County welcomes new foster parents and offers support every step of the way. To learn more or begin the pro cess, call 1-800-665-KIDS . There is al ways room for one more heart, one more home, one more open door, one more person willing to say yes to a child or teen in need of safety and support.

Even with that commitment, some chil

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Riverside County Department of Public Social Services | Annual Report 2024 - 2025