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Mission and Values
Community Based Services (Foster Care)
Diagnostic
Residential Treatment
La-Sa Quik Residential Treatment

LAUREL YOUTH SERVICES is always looking for qualified families and individuals who are willing to share their lives with children in need. Foster children are vulnerable and need an emotionally supportive environment for appropriate social development. While many of us take our families and natural support systems for granted, these children are in search of and in need of people who care.

The benefits of becoming a foster parent are that you can:

• help to teach a child social and age-appropriate behaviors
• help to teach a child to view the world through new eyes with greater possibilities
• help a child to understand and to repair the bonds of love that they have with their natural families
• offer a child in distress a safe and caring home
• show a child positive behaviors to imitate

What is Foster Care? Foster care is a child welfare service that provides full-time substitute family care for children when their own families are unable to care for them for a temporary or extended period of time. A primary focus of foster care is reunification of the child with his or her family or assuring a permanency plan for the child.

Foster care may be long-term, short-term, or an emergency placement. Foster care is based on the belief that all children have the right to physical care and educational and emotional nurturing. Foster parenting is not a lifetime commitment to a child, but your commitment will be meaningful to that child for a lifetime.

Who can be a Foster Parent? Foster parents must be at least 21 years of age and may be married or single, with or without children of their own. Foster parents must pass a background check that is free of abusive or violent crimes and must meet agency and state requirements concerning emotional stability and home safety.

How does Laurel Youth Services assist Foster Parents? LYS has an extensive support system available to foster parents.

• 24 hour, 7 days a week on-call services for emergency situations
• caseworker support
• extensive pre-service and in-service training programs
• agency-paid respite care if needed
• financial reimbursement

If you would like more information about becoming a foster parent, or would like to receive more information about our foster care programs, please contact:

In the Williamsport area:
Outreach Coordinator @ 1-800-734-8291 or 570-326-0532
In the Greensburg area:
Outreach Coordinator @ 724-838-7790

Or send your name, address, and telephone to the Williamsport or Greensburg offices listed below.

Contact: lys@laurelhs.org

Locations:

Blossburg Laurel Youth Services P.O. Box 8, Blossburg, PA 16912 570-638-1210 1-800-808-5287 Cogan Station La-Sa-Quik Residential Treatment 651 St. Michaels Road Cogan Station, PA (570) 998-9261 Greensburg 1011 Old Salem Road, Suite 208 Greensburg, PA (724) 838-7790 Williamsport 1965 Lycoming Creek Road Williamsport, PA (570) 326-0532 800-734-8291