$10,238 raised by 46 donors
100% complete
$10,000 Goal
Children deserve to heal. Child welfare is grossly misunderstood, under-resourced and devalued. Stereotypes of old school foster parents “doing it for the money” are harmful and wrong.
Families are struggling, and support services are lacking. Children are lingering in out of home care far too long. Child welfare is on the verge of doing more harm than good. It’s time to support all families, reunify children when possible and support lasting and therapeutic permanency when reunification isn’t possible.
The work is driven by the understanding that every child involved in child welfare deserves a supportive environment where they can heal and thrive. By providing free and comprehensive support to those who care for them, Be the Source aims to inspire lasting change and positive outcomes for the children served.
Our Goals, Our Values, Our Why
Research shows that a key element for children from abuse and neglect to heal is an attuned, trauma-informed caregiver. Therefore, Be The Source’s goals are to:
To allow children needing out of home care the opportunity to begin to heal by ensuring they receive the best possible therapeutic parenting.
Stabilize out of home placements by investing in caregiver support, ensuring that children remain in the best placement whenever possible, fostering stability and promoting healing.
Reduce caregiver turnover by addressing the root causes of burnout, including a lack of support, training, and resources.
Advocate for policy changes at the local, state, and federal levels to elevate the voices of foster and kinship families and the children in their care.
Promote mental health and wellbeing by providing trauma-informed therapy and respite services for caregivers and children.
Enhance public understanding of the child welfare system and the challenges caregivers and children face.
Our core values:
Lived Experience: We highly value listening to, learning from and shaping programming around feedback from those with lived experience in child welfare.
Community: It’s all about relationships. We value the transformative impact of connection and prioritize social support as essential for the well-being of children and families.
Resourcefulness: We are committed to being mindful and diligent with our gifts and resources, and we are inspired to find quick and creative ways to help families overcome challenges and unusual problems.
Equity in Child Welfare: We value the rights of everyone involved in child welfare, and we support a balanced, common sense approach to outcomes for families that prioritizes long term healing for children.
OUR MISSION
To promote healing for children and families impacted by foster and kinship care through meaningful, transformational resources, community and support.
Founded as a grassroots initiative in 2016 by former foster parents and current adoptive parents, Renee and Brian Bernhard, "Foster Source" was created to address critical gaps in support for both caregivers and the vulnerable children in their care. In response to the 2018 passage of the federal Family First Prevention Services Act, Foster Source expanded its programs to better support kinship caregivers in addition to foster parents. With the full implementation of the Act in 2022, the organization became one of the few agencies in the state of Colorado to offer dual support for both children and their caregivers in the child welfare system. In 2025, Foster Source rebranded to "Be the Source" to reflect its expanded mission and the variety of families it now serves.
Today, Be The Source is committed to turning the focus back to the children, ensuring they receive the care and stability they deserve. The agency is focused on addressing needs including: under-resourced caregivers; lack of lived-experience voices in local, state and federal policy decisions; overall lack of understanding about the purpose of out-of-home care; mental health and wellbeing of caregivers and children; stability for children in care; and reducing or removing the barriers and lack of resources that child welfare families face.
The work is driven by the understanding that every child involved in child welfare deserves a supportive environment where they can heal and thrive. By providing free and comprehensive support to those who care for them, Be the Source aims to inspire lasting change and positive outcomes for the children served.
Organization name
Foster Source dba Be the Source
2016
Tax id (EIN)
81-2922749
Category
Human Services
Organization Size
Large Organization
Colorado State Tax Credits
Colorado Child Care Credit
Address
11860 Pecos St. Suite 1131Mailing
3879 E 120th Ave # 218CO, US