Nonprofit: Isaiah 117 House (Transitional Housing For Foster Kids)

Isaiah 117 House “is a non profit organization that provides physical and emotional support for children awaiting foster care placement. The unique concept for building homes and teams for this type of transitional care was conceived by Ronda Paulson. Its mission is to provide a safe and loving environment for children that reduces the trauma of relocation while also supporting caseworkers and foster care families.

Paulson and her husband Corey started the organization in 2015. As they prepared to open their home to foster children, they visited the local Child Protective Services office for part of their Path Training to qualify. When Ronda learned that children slept in the CPS office for hours or even days after their removal, she was inspired to build a transitional home for these children in Elizabethton, Tennessee.

The Paulson’s first foster child was named Isaiah, so they named the organization in his honor.

After a building was secured for the organization’s headquarters, a lady named Stacie Peters nominated Paulson eight times before it was featured on Mike Rowe’s series Returning the Favor. Landing on Rowe’s show created such massive interest that there are now locations in six states.

According to Krista Patton, Expansion Coordinator for Isaiah 117 House, there were 572 children in foster care in Walker and Montgomery counties combined last year. Patton is a resident of Walker County and was formerly a CASA volunteer in Montgomery. She is currently raising awareness for the program and working on fundraising. Patton learned about Isaiah 117 House by watching Paulson’s story on Returning the Favor.

“When a child is removed by CPS, they lose their friends, teachers, and families. They lose everything that day,” Patton said. “Many are taken from school and they don’t know why they’re being picked up from school by a stranger.”

New legislation signed by Governor Abbott last June restricted children from sleeping in CPS offices, which now places children in hotels and motels. CPS caseworkers are still charged with ensuring the children are fed, bathed and taken to school while attempting to manage the required paperwork and foster family placement.

In 2020, over 213,000 kids under the age of 18 entered foster care in the U.S. More than 50,000 live in Texas. Very young children are normally placed in a foster home within a few days. Teenagers removed from a home in Texas could face a motel stay for weeks or even months. Last year, more than 100 kids were sent out of state due to a lack of foster care families.

Isaiah 1:17 says “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.” The organizations’ tagline “Love, you’re not alone”, speaks to the mission that drives their efforts. The staff of volunteers at each Isaiah 117 House bridge the transition gap by providing emotional support, home cooked meals, clothes and toiletries, and a safe place for children to meet with adults navigating their placement. Volunteers are also TBRI trained, meaning they have studied a curriculum on trust based, trauma informed intervention specifically created for vulnerable children.

Five Isaiah 117 homes are coming to Texas. The one in Dallas County is expected to break ground Aug. 8. McClennan and Brazoria county teams are raising awareness and seeking home sites along with Patton and volunteers in Walker and Montgomery counties. The next volunteer meeting is at 2:30 Sunday, July 24 at First Baptist Conroe and is held on the fourth Sunday of every month. Patton is also seeking a venue and food donations for a fundraiser in October.”

Isaiah 117 Houses are in Tennessee, Indiana, Florida, Virginia, Texas and Georgia.

Transitional housing for foster kids expands into Walker County

[The Huntsville Item 7/19/22 by Kristie Stevens]

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