Become A Foster Parent

Learn More
CSS HELPLINE: 267-331-2490
CSS HELPLINE
CSS HELPLINE

Foster Care Parents Shortage in Philadelphia

Foster Care Shortage in Philadelphia On an evening in March, a director from Catholic Social Services answered eight calls at his home from the Department of Human Services. Earlier that week, he answered five calls from a county referral agency. All of the callers were looking for the same thing: a safe home for a vulnerable child. A child whose own home had become too unsafe or too unhealthy to live in, or a child who was suffering from abuse and neglect. Some of the calls resulted in placements. Most calls did not because of the shortage of available resource parents. The City of Philadelphia estimates that there are roughly 4,300 children in foster care at any given time. On a typical day, more than a dozen children are waiting to be placed. In Philadelphia, the demand for foster parents (also know as resource parents) has increased in recent years,

By |2022-04-04T12:03:33-04:00April 4th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off on Foster Care Parents Shortage in Philadelphia
Read More

Afghan Refugee Welcome Luncheon

Catholic Social Services Hosts Afghan Refugee Welcome Luncheon in Philadelphia Catholic Social Services will host an Afghan refugee welcome luncheon on Saturday, March 19 through its Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. Around 125 guests will be in attendance including approximately 75 Afghan evacuees at Saint John Chrysostom Parish in Wallingford, Pennsylvania. The luncheon is the agency's way to thank the program supporters, donors, staff, and volunteers, and officially welcome the Afghan evacuees. Highlights of the event will include traditional Afghani and Mediterranean food, and both American and Afghani music. Poetry and testimonials will be read from participants in CSS’ Afghan Placement and Assistance Program. Reverend Edward J. Hallinan, Pastor of Saint John Chrysostom Parish, will offer the invocation and blessing. Reverend Christopher M. Walsh, Pastor of Saint Raymond of Peñafort Parish (Philadelphia), will serve as the event Emcee. Help for Afghan Refugees in Philadelphia Most Americans can't imagine the harrowing experience of Afghan refugees fleeing

By |2022-03-28T20:00:11-04:00March 17th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off on Afghan Refugee Welcome Luncheon
Read More

Catholic Social Services Take Back the Month Campaign

Villa Joseph Student, Abigail G., drops off supplies at Mercy Hospice. Catholic Social Services, of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, sponsors an ongoing donation campaign called “Take Back the Month” to provide personal care items and period supplies for low-income women and girls. This week, Mercy Hospice received a generous donation of feminine hygiene products and travel-sized toiletries from a student at Villa Joseph Marie High School for Girls in Bucks County, PA. Period Poverty, a Public Health Issue 300 million women and girls menstruate every day. But thousands of women and girls are unable to afford pads and tampons. When people can’t afford period products, they resort to cheaper alternatives: cotton balls, towels, and diapers. When women can't afford pads and tampons, they ration them, or worse, overextend their use. This creates the potential for Toxic Shock Syndrome, a serious, life-threatening illness. Lack of Period Products Means Girls

By |2022-02-26T17:06:52-05:00February 23rd, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off on Catholic Social Services Take Back the Month Campaign
Read More

Foster Parents Needed in Philadelphia

Foster parents are needed in Pennsylvania. Between 13,000 and 15,000 children in our state are in the foster care system.  Over 8,000 of these children are over 13 years old.  It is even worse in Philadelphia with more than 4,000 children in foster care. Catholic Social Services has been providing children in need of foster care with loving, supporting homes for decades.  Our good work continues today after the Supreme Court recently sided with Catholic Social Services allowing us to provide foster care for children in the foster system. Catholic Social Services of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia is the one of the leading providers of social services and welfare programs in the state of Pennsylvania.   We provide foster care and kinship care for children between birth and 21 years of age.  Ultimately, we hope to provide children with a permanent home and a loving family. Foster Parents Needed There is

By |2022-02-18T15:39:26-05:00February 14th, 2022|Uncategorized, Foster Care|Comments Off on Foster Parents Needed in Philadelphia
Read More

Catholic Social Services Welcomes Newcomers Through Immigration Legal Services

Catholic Social Services Immigration Legal Services “Every migrant is a human person who, as such, possesses fundamental, inalienable rights that must be respected by everyone and in every circumstance.” Caritas in Veritate (“Charity in Truth”), Pope Benedict XVI, 2009, #62. (Citing from Cf. Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, Instruction Erga Migrantes Caritas Christi (3 May 2004)) Pope Benedict’s words about the obligations all of us must protect the basic human rights of undocumented immigrants live and breathe in the Immigration Legal Services Department at CSS Philadelphia. Catholic Social Services Helps Immigrants to the United States Upon arrival in the United States, immigrants face a daunting array of linguistic, economic, cultural and legal challenges. Through immigration legal services, newcomers receive high-quality legal consultation, referral, and representation for an array of immigration benefits, such as political asylum, naturalization, and family reunification. Guided by our

By |2022-02-18T15:37:03-05:00February 11th, 2022|Uncategorized, Immigration|Comments Off on Catholic Social Services Welcomes Newcomers Through Immigration Legal Services
Read More

Catholic Social Services Celebrates Christmas, Annual Children’s Benefit

Catholic Social Services celebrates Christmas!  The spirit of the season was alive and in full view on Monday, December 20th as the Archbishop’s Benefit for Children hosted its Annual Christmas Party here in Philadelphia. Nearly 300 children joined Archbishop Perez as representatives of thousands of young people across the Greater Philadelphia region who benefit annually from community-based and residential programs offered by Philadelphia Catholic Social Services (CSS). This year’s theme was “Superheroes!” and many of those Superheroes were out to celebrate the season! This year the party kicked off with a live Nativity scene in the parking lot of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Center, with featured student performers from Saint Raymond of Peñafort Independence Mission School (Philadelphia) along with live animals reenacting the miracle of Christ’s birth here on Earth. Following the Live Nativity, the party continued directly across from the Archdiocesan Pastoral Center at the Sheraton Philadelphia Downtown Hotel, where

By |2022-01-25T18:46:00-05:00January 25th, 2022|Uncategorized|Comments Off on Catholic Social Services Celebrates Christmas, Annual Children’s Benefit
Read More