Kinship Care Month Proclamation

September is Kinship Care Month! We take this time to celebrate the importance of grandparents raising grandchildren and other relative caregivers across Oregon. These kinship families make a difference every day. 

In that light, we are pleased to announce that Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has issued a proclamation recognizing September 2021 as Kinship Care Month. We are honored to be included in this message, which helps raise awareness about the important role kinship families serve for youth in need. Read the full proclamation below.

STATE OF OREGON 

PROCLAMATION 

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR 

WHEREAS:
The family unit is one of the most vital structures for providing Oregon’s children with love, dignity, and belonging. While every family has a unique structure, a sense of physical and emotional safety, encouragement and stability is vital to children’s emotional, physical and developmental health; and 

WHEREAS:
In Oregon, over 2,762 children in foster care and 35,000 children outside of foster care are raised in kinship families. Made up of people who have stepped forward to provide children with a sense of connection, security, and ties to their cultural heritage, family, and community; and 

WHEREAS:
The Oregon Department of Human Services, Child Welfare Division includes the preservation of kinship care connections as one of its transformational goals. Honoring kinship caregivers and their crucial role in serving young people in need by partnering with key community partners, such as Oregon Kinship Navigator and other family-serving agencies, to meet the needs of families in creative ways each day; and 

WHEREAS:
The State of Oregon acknowledges and honors the daily achievements of kinship caregivers that are pivotal in nurturing the next generation’s ability to succeed and thrive; and 

WHEREAS:
Kinship Care Month provides an opportunity to showcase the accomplishments of countless young people throughout Oregon who have successfully navigated the emotional difficulties of separation from their parents with the unconditional support of their kinship care providers. 

NOW, THEREFORE:
I, Kate Brown, Governor of the State of Oregon, hereby proclaim September 2021 to be 

KINSHIP CARE MONTH 

in Oregon and encourage all Oregonians to join in this observance. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I hereunto set my hand and cause the Great Seal of the State of Oregon to be affixed. Done at the Capitol in the City of Salem in the State of Oregon on this day, August 30, 2021. 

Kate Brown, Governor 

Shemia Fagan, Secretary of State