Full Text of SR0913 101st General Assembly
SR0913 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, President Ronald Reagan declared May as National | 3 | | Foster Care Month to recognize the important contributions that | 4 | | foster parents make to society and to the most vulnerable among | 5 | | us by opening their homes to abused and abandoned children; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, The number of children in foster care in Illinois | 7 | | has been increasing at an alarming pace; thousands of Illinois | 8 | | children, through no fault of their own, have been separated | 9 | | from their families and are living in foster care; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, The number of children in the care of the State of | 11 | | Illinois has reached almost 20,000, which includes over 15,000 | 12 | | foster children, and has increased by more than 2,000 over the | 13 | | past year; and | 14 | | WHEREAS, Children in foster care are of all ages and | 15 | | backgrounds; many of them are accompanied by younger brothers | 16 | | and sisters; they need the comfort, support, and security that | 17 | | only a family can provide; and | 18 | | WHEREAS, Many foster children will never be re-united with | 19 | | their biological families; approximately half of foster | 20 | | children will not be returned to their birth families; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Most of the children under care of the State live | 2 | | in temporary situations with either relatives or foster | 3 | | families; some live in professionally-staffed group settings; | 4 | | and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Children deserve the love and security of a home | 6 | | and a 'forever' family; adoption offers stability and better | 7 | | outcomes for children in foster care, allowing them to flourish | 8 | | in a safe, welcoming, and stable environment; and
| 9 | | WHEREAS, Illinois lags the nation, ranking last among the | 10 | | 50 states, in the permanent placement and adoption of children | 11 | | in its foster care system; and
| 12 | | WHEREAS, Illinois is committed to ensuring that children | 13 | | grow up in healthy, safe, and loving homes; therefore, be it
| 14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL | 15 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare May of 2020 | 16 | | as Foster Care Month in Illinois and urge the Department of | 17 | | Children and Family Services to facilitate and encourage the | 18 | | adoption of children in foster care throughout the State; and | 19 | | be it further
| 20 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 21 | | presented to the Director of Children and Family Services.
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