People Places Perspectives

Time-outs are a common “discipline” practice used to address negative behavior, with many parents believing it is the best option available to them. But what do time-outs teach a child, and do they help achieve the goals of discipline?

When I began working in the field of foster care, I knew very little about the system and process outside of my own, personal interest in fostering and adopting one day. During my year and a half tenure working for People Places as the Marketing, Advertising, and Recruitment Specialist, I have learned so much about the steps that need to…

Time-outs are a common “discipline” practice used to address negative behavior, with many parents believing it is the best option available to them. But what do time-outs teach a child, and do they help achieve the goals of discipline?

Colleen entered foster care at age 8 and was referred to People Places at age 11. Today, she is articulate, successful, and a loving mother to two boys of her own. She recounts her time in the system; “I know DSS like the back of my hand. When you’ve been rejected by your parents, you know what love is and…

Written by: Richard Doyle, MSW – Family Services Coordinator, Supervisee in Social Work   In my last blog post I introduced the book No Drama Discipline by Daniel Siegel and Tina Bryson. Central to their approach to discipline is the phrase connect and redirect. They also stress taking an approach that is intentional and responsive. Last time we considered asking…

  Written by: Brad Wentz, LCSW – Charlottesville Regional Program Director Thanks to Social Media, there is an explosion of “Appreciation Months” and “Appreciation Days”.  With themes like “National Popcorn Day”, and “Bring Your Dog to Work Day”, it’s hard to keep track of them all.  However, as long as I have been in the field, March has been designated…

Written by People Places’ mentor, Irv Kempf While growing up I was blessed with certain teachers, neighbors, coaches, and employers who found time to take a kindly interest in me as a unique individual. They encouraged, guided, and inspired me to believe in myself and accept more of my true potential. As I grew older these people were no longer…

Is the following scenario familiar? You come downstairs in the morning and two of your children are bickering. A bowl of cereal spills on the table and the dog jumps in to “help” clean it up. Another child is half-dressed, half-awake, and about to miss his bus for the third time this month. The phone rings, it’s the babysitter cancelling…

In the midst of this holiday season, have you ever stopped to think about the gifts you RECEIVE as a foster parent? It’s easy to recognize the many gifts foster parents give to children placed in their homes,  but what about the gifts the experience brings foster parents? The greatest gift is the opportunity to be a mom or a dad for…

Today, November 8th, is National Parents as Teachers Day.  The concept for Parents as Teachers developed in the 1970s when educators noted that children were beginning kindergarten with varying levels of school readiness.  Decades of research shows that parental involvement is a critical link in a child’s development of learning competencies (like reading and writing) and social skills (like communication,…

As we welcome the many joys of October including cooler weather, trips to the pumpkin patch, and apple cider- it is also important to acknowledge that the last several months of natural and unnatural disasters have been unprecedented, heartbreaking and very difficult from a national and worldwide perspective. People Places recognizes that these incidents affect us all, no matter how…

Written by: Kindall Stevenson, Marketing, Advertising & Recruitment Specialist On September 15th, People Places held its first ever golf tournament at the Waynesboro Country Club. In total, $3,617.84 dollars were raised, and all proceeds will support therapeutic groups for foster children! These groups assist children as they learn valuable social and independent living skills, relaxation skills, relationship building, and how to manage…

Written by: Penny Combs, Community Liaison This is my 30th year working for People Places, Inc. And, in that time, I have never seen such a desire to engage youth and families in such a personal, powerful, and informative way. Decision makers at both the state and local levels are eager to hear the stories of foster/adoptive youth, former foster/ adoptive…

Written by: Melissa Blinn, Licensing Supervisor Occasionally, usually in the quiet evening hours (and unfortunately sometimes in the middle of a sleepless night), a simple lyric or song repeats in play mode in my mind. Often, the songs are from the 70’s or 80’s, taking me back to a sweet childhood memory. For the most part, I acknowledge the tune and…

In Virginia, over 60% of of our foster care youth are adopted by their foster parent. Currently, there are over 5000 children in Virginia's foster care system. Of those 5000, over 700 children are ready for adoption right now. According to the Children's Bureau, nearly 428,000 children in the U.S. are in foster care on any given day.