The foster care system in California provides vital care for thousands of young people. Without this system, these young people would be on their own and would surely face a long list of negative outcomes. While foster care alone provides a great service, it’s even more powerful when paired with transitional housing in California. Too many foster children still wind up facing difficulties in adult life after they leave foster care, but the availability of transitional housing makes that outcome less likely.

An Opportunity Taken for Granted

Young people with a stable home life have the opportunity to move back and forth between their parent’s house and living out on their own in the “real world”. For some, it takes a few attempts to live out on their own before they are able to find stability and move forward. When a young person grows up in the foster system, they don’t have that flexibility – it’s all or nothing once they go out on their own. Through the use of transitional housing in California, the playing field can be leveled a bit, and these former foster youth are able to have some support and security while trying to figure out how life works as an adult.

Introducing Young People to the World

When you think about it, there is a ton to learn in the process of shifting from a child to an adult. It’s not easy to do things like hold down a job, pay bills month after month, manage relationships, and much more. These things are made infinitely harder when a young person doesn’t have access to transitional housing in California and has to do everything all on their own. That might not be an impossible task, but it’s pretty close to it – so offering transitional housing for foster kids past their 18^th birthday is a great service that is more than worthy of support.

If you are eligible for the transitional housing program and interested in learning more, apply now. If you want to become a mentor for the young adults in the THP program, contact Children First Foster Family Agency.

Children First FFA is a private, non-profit organization in Northern California that is dedicated to helping change lives by providing a safe place for children to heal in a culture of love, acceptance, and consistency.