WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas — Isaiah 117 House is changing the way foster care children are treated when in the process of being placed into a foster home.
The organization, based in Tennessee, provides physical and emotional support to children in the foster care system, and are now expanding to Central Texas.
A 2021 report detailed circumstances in which 501 children spent at least one night in a non-licensed, State-operated placement during the first half of last year. Some children spent more than 100 consecutive nights without a proper place to sleep, including caseworker's offices, hotels, churches and shelters.
Isaiah 117 House hopes to give kids a warm and cozy place where they can eat snacks and play with toys, while their caseworkers work to find their next foster parents. The organization has homes across the following states:
"They're waiting," said Ronda Paulson, Isaiah 117 House founder and director. "They have nothing, and they're tired. They're hungry ... most of them are dirty or scared."
Paulson continued, "what if we could step in in that moment and lavishly love on them and meet their immediate needs?"
Isaiah 117 House is based on the phrase "defend the cause of the fatherless" from Isaiah 1:17, according to the organization's website. They work to meet both the kids' needs and those helping them. This program is something many advocates, in addition to the founder, feel will do a lot of good across the region.
"It provides comfort for the children that are being removed on a difficult day," said Teohanna Mayo, a staff member with the Department of Family and Protective Services. "It also provides a space where caseworkers can focus on the necessary paperwork while children are being loved on with volunteers who are trained."
Paulson said Saturday was their kickoff event. They hope to continue raising awareness in the coming months. Eventually the organization will begin fundraising to bring the much-anticipated home to Central Texas.
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