The Texas Foster Youth Justice Project provides free legal services for current and former foster youth throughout Texas. The team helps youth with various legal and administrative matters such as obtaining copies of CPS records; erasing criminal and juvenile records; and accessing foster youth benefits and programs that help in the transition from foster care to independence.

Call to verify eligibility.

Planned Parenthood South Texas has three health care subsidiaries that provide a wide range of family planning and sexual health care services, including:

• Birth control options
• Emergency contraception
• Well-woman exams, including Pap screenings and clinical breast exams
• Pelvic exams
• Pregnancy testing
• Abortion care (TX Licenses #130241, #140015, #140016)
• "Stop Cervical Cancer" care*
• Menopause care, including referral for mammograms
• Pregnancy testing
• Gestational dating sonogram
• Pregnancy options
• Referral for adoption and prenatal care
• Male exams**
• STD/STI testing and treatment
• PrEP - Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, an HIV prevention method
• Gender-affirming hormone therapy
• Testing and treatment for UTIs
• Fertility evaluation and treatment
• Primary care

*  "Stop Cervical Cancer" care includes HPV vaccines, HPV testing, and follow-up care to help reduce the risk of acquiring cervical cancer.

**Male exams include a physical examination that includes chest, heart, lungs, abdomen, and genital area; screening for testicular cancer and instruction on performing a testicular self-exam to detect lumps or bumps that may be cancerous.

Click here to make an appointment.

With or without insurance, you can always come to us for your health care.

The Children’s Shelter provides treatment foster care for children from birth to 18 years old who have been removed from their birth families due to abuse, abandonment or neglect. There is an on-going need for loving, stable and licensed therapeutic foster care homes in Bexar County to provide the environment children need while awaiting permanency (biological reunification, kinship placement or natural adoption).

Treatment foster care can range from overnight upwards to 22 months.

Treatment foster parents may elect to adopt children when their biological parents’ rights have been terminated.

Children: Birth to 18 years old.

Free.

TDFPS provides information, training, and licenses for approval to become a foster parent or adopting parent.

Foster care and adoptive parents must be 21 years old and up, pass a background check, submit to home inspections, attend trainings, and be willing to work with the welfare team.

Planned Parenthood South Texas has three health care subsidiaries that provide a wide range of family planning and sexual health care services, including:

• Birth control options
• Emergency contraception
• Well-woman exams, including Pap screenings and clinical breast exams
• Pelvic exams
• Pregnancy testing
• Abortion care (TX Licenses #130241, #140015, #140016)
• "Stop Cervical Cancer" care*
• Menopause care, including referral for mammograms
• Pregnancy testing
• Gestational dating sonogram
• Pregnancy options
• Referral for adoption and prenatal care
• Male exams**
• STD/STI testing and treatment
• PrEP - Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, an HIV prevention method
• Gender-affirming hormone therapy
• Testing and treatment for UTIs
• Fertility evaluation and treatment
• Primary care

*  "Stop Cervical Cancer" care includes HPV vaccines, HPV testing, and follow-up care to help reduce the risk of acquiring cervical cancer.

**Male exams include a physical examination that includes chest, heart, lungs, abdomen, and genital area; screening for testicular cancer and instruction on performing a testicular self-exam to detect lumps or bumps that may be cancerous.

Click here to make an appointment.

With or without insurance, you can always come to us for your health care.

Why mentor?

Thousands of young adults age out of foster care without a permanent home or family support. Many of these become homeless, pregnant, or incarcerated. For this often-forgotten group, having a mentor can make the difference between statistic or success.

To Become a Mentor:

• Attend one of our monthly Mentor Information and Training sessions. Complete a THRU Project Mentor Application prior to attending the session, download the form here.
• Get a jumpstart to your training by downloading THRU Project's Training Manual here.

If you are a youth in foster care, aging out doesn't necessarily mean you are on your own.

We can:

• Introduce you to an adult Mentor that can provide a listening ear and a support system for you
• Provide a bus pass to help with transportation
• Provide a cell phone and service to connect you to your Mentor and vital resources
• Connect you to other resources for housing, employment and life skills
• Provide housing necessities such as kitchen and bath supplies

We are only servicing these areas at this time:

Bulverde, Boerne, New Braunfels, San Antonio, and Converse Texas.

Please note: THRU Project Mentor program requires a one-year commitment to:

• Meet with your Mentor at least once each month
• Reply to any Mentor communications

Failure to do so may result in elimination from the program.

Free.

We offer free cell phones and service plans to our foster youth preparing to age out and former foster youth.

Youth in the foster care system often face a frustrating reality of constant upheaval, moving from placement to placement, which can severely affect their ability to create a solid foundation. New caseworkers come and go, and new placements often mean a new school, causing youth to lose touch with friends and family members.

COVID-19 cast a wider spotlight on the digital gap that challenges foster youth. The pandemic forced an online reality on the world. Foster youth preparing to age out and former foster youth often lack access to basic internet. Limited access to technology not only hampers a foster youth’s ability to grow and maintain stable connections, it also affects their desire to stay updated, consume information, find employment, successfully participate in education, and access important resources to plan for their future.

Every youth who enters our program is eligible to receive a free cell phone and service plan. THRU Project created its cell phone program because we believe that in removing this barrier we can dramatically improve not only mental health and wellness but the overall success outcomes of our foster youth. This program really works in tandem with our volunteer mentor program as a phone-in-hand serves as an important lifeline between mentor and mentee.

Foster children are moved around a lot. From placement to placement.

Learning important life skills often gets lost in the shuffle.

Our Life-Skills and Engagement Program came from recognizing that although THRU Project provides basic support such as bus passes, resource referrals, phones and job/education related assistance, our young adults oftentimes lack the life skills and positive networks necessary to break negative cycles.

THRU Project has developed a two-pronged approach that engages both youth and their volunteer mentors. Our goal is to host four workshop/events quarterly that focus on a particular skill. Topics will be chosen by the youth in our program; and may include cooking and nutrition, human trafficking, networking, communication, higher learning, and interview skills. The second part of each session will engage participants and volunteer mentors in team-building activities that are fun and create community.

Our goal for the Life Skills Program is that our youth begin to see themselves as a part of something bigger than themselves and know they are among people who understand their particular needs and situations.

Click here for more information.

THRU Project is partnering with local employers to provide more employment opportunities for former foster youth!

We are looking for partners in the San Antonio area business community who are willing to offer foster-friendly work environments. This means they are able to be understanding and patient with unique situations of current and former foster youth including, but not limited to: transportation obstacles, communication (computer/cell phone) challenges, past trauma, and childcare.

Employers can post job opportunities here.

Foster Youth can view job opportunities here.

Click here for more information on this program.

Providing Counseling services for Child Loss, Miscarriage, Infertility Issues, Family Counseling, Divorce, Adopting, Fostering, Chronic Illness, Cancer, First Responders, Veterans, Adjustment, Anxiety, Depression, Women's Issues, Self-Esteem, Adolescents, Young Adults, and more!

Call to verify eligibility.

Abrazo will help you explore your adoption options and give you honest answers to your questions. Abrazo offers free adoption help for any parents considering placement. Abrazo also offers private counseling, adoption education, a birthparent support group and professional referrals to help you find your own best answers.

Pregnant? Placing? Call anytime, day or night: 800-454-5683

Pregnant or with a child(ren) that they are seeking an open adoption plan.

All behavior has meaning. It is a way of communicating feelings and needs. So-called problem behavior is one way a child expresses conflict, which is difficult to conceptualize and verbalize. A child can channel and give conceptual form to negative feelings and behaviors through working with art materials. The clarification and responses of an art therapist facilitates the child’s awareness of patterns, intentions, and the meaning of behavior.

A child-centered approach curriculum addresses social and developmental issues for children and teens in the foster care system. This curriculum incorporates culturally-rooted concepts and values of each individual through indigenous teachings, writings, and expressive modalities.

In addition, clients will have the opportunity to learn meditation, guided imagery, and the calming effects of quieting the mind through meditation techniques.

Licensed professional counselors provide confidential psychotherapy sessions to individuals, families, and in group settings to those who are experiencing behavioral, social, or challenging situations as it relates to being in the foster care system. Counseling session objectives are to strengthen personal awareness, nurture, heal, foster positive social changes, improve family communication, and expand and deepen their personal skills needed to help cope with the challenges that come from being the foster care system.

We currently only accept the following insurances:

• TX Medicaid
• Community First
• Blue Cross Blue Shield
• Aetna Better Health of TX
• Optum

Please call for private-pay fees.

There are many children, right in our communities, in need of a forever home. EmberHope Youthville is dedicated to helping these children find a family who will love and cherish them for the rest of their lives. Together, we can make a difference in a child’s life. We are currently licensed to provide foster and adoption services to interested families. We are also licensed to service children with Primary Medical Needs (PMN).

Additional benefits for Texas foster parents, Mileage reimbursement and Initial clothing reimbursement.

ConnectEd offers paid workshops and advocacy for current and former foster youth (ages 16-24) seeking skills needed for employment and relationship success.

Our workshops provide real-life practice opportunities for youth who seek positive relationships and encourage them to maintain a healthy network of peer support.

Participants are required to commit to a 3- or 4-week training schedule (16 hrs per week) where they will learn these skills. ConnectEd participants who complete workshop training sessions will receive a weekly stipend of $187.84.

Participants will also be paired with an Advocate who will provide additional 4 weeks of paid advocacy, mentorship, career guidance, employment, and educational support. Youth will receive an additional stipend each week they check in with their assigned Advocate to reach their goals and milestones.

This program is exclusively for current and former foster youth (ages 16-24).

The PAL program provides services to youth aging out of the foster care system to expand their skills and knowledge; strengthen their self-confidence; create healthy community relationships, and ultimately learn self-guidance.

Our programs provide services to help with:

• accessing education and vocational services.
• finding employment.
• accessing medical services.
• obtaining housing.
• establishing relationships that improve outcomes in the transition to adult life.

Texas provides the following benefits to youth when they move from foster care to adulthood:

• Transitional Living Allowance
• Tuition and Fee Waiver

In order to receive the following benefits, youth must remain in state conservatorship (in-care) until the 18th birthday.

• Aftercare Room and Board Assistance
• Transitional Medicaid
• Texas Education and Training Voucher Program (ETV)
• Reimbursable Expenses

Click here for more information about PAL Events and Circles of Support.

PAL provides transition services to foster youth and alumni from ages 17 to 21 in order to better prepare young adults for emancipation.

The Adoption Alliance is a 501c3 non-profit organization which is licensed to provide adoptions services in the State of Texas.

We can assist birth parents who are interested in making an adoption plan for their unborn or born children. Counseling is available during the pregnancy and afterwards. We can assist with housing, groceries, utilities, cell phone service, laundry, clothing, personal hygiene and maternity related transportation.

If a birth mother does not have Medicaid, we can assist her with the application and refer her to an OB doctor.

Birth parents are able to select the adoptive family for their child and keep in touch with them if they desire.

Birth mothers who are seeking to make an adoption plan for their child must provide a proof of pregnancy.

Our Foster Care and Adoption Program in San Antonio and surrounding counties licenses and trains families to open their homes and hearts to children ready to live in a family setting, both through short-term foster care and forever adoption. We are creating forever families!

SJRC Texas is looking for individuals and families to open their homes and hearts to children in foster care and adoption. Becoming a foster or adoptive parent is a great way to help children in need, give back and strengthen the community.

Foster families are individuals or families that provide a safe and loving place for foster children to live. They provide a normal living environment, help children build self-esteem, learn social skills and provide opportunities to create happy childhood memories. You also have the opportunity to give a child a forever home, through adoption.

Adoption is the goal for many children placed in foster care. The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) requires all foster children to be placed in a foster home for a minimum of 6-months before they are eligible for adoption. SJRC Texas works with foster-to-adopt families during this time to prepare them for the adoption and is there every step of the way to guide the families through to the consummation of the adoption.

There are also many other ways to support our amazing children and their foster families. You can help to spread the word about our program, become trained and licensed to provide Respite Care or babysitting for our foster families or volunteer to provide other needed help and support to our foster families.

The Parents as Teachers Parenting Program at SJRC Texas provides FREE in-home parenting support to families with young children.

The Parenting Program at SJRC Texas wants to help you give your child the best possible start! Learn how to capture the teachable moments in everyday life. We believe all children deserve support so they can learn, grow, and develop to realize their full potential. Parents As Teachers (PAT) provides the information, support, and resources families need to help their children develop during the crucial early years of life. We believe supporting healthy families builds a healthy community.

How can we help our children develop empathy?

1. Nurturing Discipline Techniques: Hitting, spanking, belittling, and criticizing are all road blocks to developing empathy. Positive discipline has the greatest impact on the development of empathy.
2. Identify and Honor your Child's Feelings: Validating your child’s feelings allows them to accept their own emotions. "You look so sad. Losing your ball is a sad thing."
3. Model Empathy: When parents practice empathy they are teaching their children to react to others in a caring way.
4. Develop Family Rules: Families who care raise children who care. Rules like don’t use hurting words and respect other people’s things help develop empathetic habits.
5. Point out Non-Verbal Cues: Teach children what their non-verbal cues are saying. "It hurts my feelings when you roll your eyes while I am talking." "When you smile at me I feel good inside."

Our Foster Care and Adoption Program in San Antonio and surrounding counties licenses and trains families to open their homes and hearts to children ready to live in a family setting, both through short-term foster care and forever adoption. We are creating forever families!

SJRC Texas is looking for individuals and families to open their homes and hearts to children in foster care and adoption. Becoming a foster or adoptive parent is a great way to help children in need, give back and strengthen the community.

Foster families are individuals or families that provide a safe and loving place for foster children to live. They provide a normal living environment, help children build self-esteem, learn social skills and provide opportunities to create happy childhood memories. You also have the opportunity to give a child a forever home, through adoption.

Adoption is the goal for many children placed in foster care. The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) requires all foster children to be placed in a foster home for a minimum of 6-months before they are eligible for adoption. SJRC Texas works with foster-to-adopt families during this time to prepare them for the adoption and is there every step of the way to guide the families through to the consummation of the adoption.

There are also many other ways to support our amazing children and their foster families. You can help to spread the word about our program, become trained and licensed to provide respite care or babysitting for our foster families or volunteer to provide other needed help and support to our foster families.

Planned Parenthood South Texas has three health care subsidiaries that provide a wide range of family planning and sexual health care services, including:

• Birth control options
• Emergency contraception
• Well-woman exams, including Pap screenings and clinical breast exams
• Pelvic exams
• Pregnancy testing
• Abortion care (TX Licenses #130241, #140015, #140016)
• "Stop Cervical Cancer" care*
• Menopause care, including referral for mammograms
• Pregnancy testing
• Gestational dating sonogram
• Pregnancy options
• Referral for adoption and prenatal care
• Male exams**
• STD/STI testing and treatment
• PrEP - Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, an HIV prevention method
• Gender-affirming hormone therapy
• Testing and treatment for UTIs
• Fertility evaluation and treatment
• Primary care

*  "Stop Cervical Cancer" care includes HPV vaccines, HPV testing, and follow-up care to help reduce the risk of acquiring cervical cancer.

**Male exams include a physical examination that includes chest, heart, lungs, abdomen, and genital area; screening for testicular cancer and instruction on performing a testicular self-exam to detect lumps or bumps that may be cancerous.

Click here to make an appointment.

With or without insurance, you can always come to us for your health care.

BCFS Health and Human Services Residential Services Division Foster Care and Adoption strives to keep children with their biological family, but when a child’s parents are unable to make the necessary changes to regain custody of their children, the state or federal government will move to place the child in the next best situation for their growing needs: with adoptive parents.

Click here for more information.

Being a foster parent is an opportunity to make a profound difference in a child’s life. BCFS Health and Human Services-San Antonio Foster Care will be your partner at every step in the process.

Children served by BCFS Health and Human Services-San Antonio are:

• Children up to 17 years of age
• Individual children or sibling groups
• Under state or federal care

Prospective foster parents must:

• be willing to meet the spiritual and religious needs of children fostered.
• have a viable source of income.
• be at least 25 years old.
• be in a marriage of at least two years.
• complete the screening process and pre-verification training requirements.
• demonstrate a nurturing parenting style.
• have adequate bedroom space.
• be willing to work with BCFS-San Antonio staff to implement a plan of care.
• maintain daily documentation in compliance with government and agency standards.

If you’ve ever thought about becoming a foster parent, now is the time to act. We will guide you through the process and provide the training and support you need!

Click here for more information.

Family law issues are uniquely personal and complex. Having an experienced lawyer on your side protects you and your children.

Our family law services:

Child support involves a great deal of financial information and math work. If you miscalculate or fail to find the right information, your children may be receiving far less than they are entitled to.

Divorce can be the most complex area of family law, especially if it involves children and/or real estate. Speak with an experienced family law firm like ours to see how we can help you navigate through a divorce.

Motion to Enforce If your ex is refusing to comply with a court order (by not paying child support or violating your visitation rights), then you will need to bring this to the attention to the court with a motion to enforce.

Adoption Adults and minors alike can be adopted. An adoption grants legal parenthood over the person being adopted. This is emotionally priceless, and also legally important for inheritance and other purposes.

Name Change Texas imposes few restrictions on how you can change your name, but changing your name is not as simple as the stroke of a pen. As such, it is best to have the assistance of an experienced family law attorney, who has the latest legal forms and knows the rules of civil procedure.

Child Support / Visitation There is little as precious to us as the time we spend with our children. With an experienced negotiator, you can maximize the amount of time that you can spend with your little ones.

CPS Litigation If Texas suspects that children are being abused or neglected, it can seize them and then try to permanently terminate the parent-child relationship. 

If Texas has taken your children or other minors and you want to be involved, contact an attorney to better understand the process and what you can do to help.

Marriage Marrying someone is one of the most important decisions you can make in life. As such, it never hurts to consult with a family attorney to discuss your marriage plans, consider premarital counseling, review any contracts you are signing for your marriage ceremony, and/or draft a premarital agreement to make sure that your marital vows truly mean something.

Fees vary depending on service.

Casey Family Programs works directly with children and families to develop and demonstrate effective, practical solutions to safely reduce the need for foster care, improve well-being, and secure safe and lifelong families for every single child in our care.

Our services include:

• Prevention
• Foster care
• Family reunification
• Young adult transition
• Kinship care
• Other permanency practices

We are committed to serving local and international orphans. We come together to ensure that adopted/foster children and their families are supported and equipped to thrive. Our ministry includes mentors, meals, transportation, respite, babysitters, support families, links to community organizations like CASA (Child Advocates of San Antonio).

Families who foster or have adopted.

Free.

Planned Parenthood South Texas has three health care subsidiaries that provide a wide range of family planning and sexual health care services, including:

• Birth control options
• Emergency contraception
• Well-woman exams, including Pap screenings and clinical breast exams
• Pelvic exams
• Pregnancy testing
• Abortion care (TX Licenses #130241, #140015, #140016)
• "Stop Cervical Cancer" care*
• Menopause care, including referral for mammograms
• Pregnancy testing
• Gestational dating sonogram
• Pregnancy options
• Referral for adoption and prenatal care
• Male exams**
• STD/STI testing and treatment
• PrEP - Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis, an HIV prevention method
• Gender-affirming hormone therapy
• Testing and treatment for UTIs
• Fertility evaluation and treatment
• Primary care

*  "Stop Cervical Cancer" care includes HPV vaccines, HPV testing, and follow-up care to help reduce the risk of acquiring cervical cancer.

**Male exams include a physical examination that includes chest, heart, lungs, abdomen, and genital area; screening for testicular cancer and instruction on performing a testicular self-exam to detect lumps or bumps that may be cancerous.

Click here to make an appointment.

With or without insurance, you can always come to us for your health care.

Adults with developmental disabilities can choose to live in a foster home with a family member or other individual as their foster care provider. RMI contracts with the foster care provider to assist with daily living skills, personal care, transportation and other activities that allow the client to live as independently as possible in a safe and supportive environment. Funding for foster care is covered by the Home and Community Based Services (HSC) Medicaid program. Individuals who do not qualify or are waiting for HCS funding may private pay to live in a foster home.

To apply to be a Foster Care Provider contact Terri Maurer.

Habilitative Homes (Hab Homes) is a licensed Residential Treatment Center providing 24-hour care to children with severe intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, often due to a pervasive developmental disorder such as autism.

Hab Homes provides an enriched, predictable, supportive environment in which the children can learn and grow in normal, healthy ways developing skills in self-care, self-direction, self-discipline, self-awareness, responsibility for decisions and choices, and building skills necessary for living as independently as possible as well-adjusted, productive adults in our society.

At Hab Homes, the environment, the programming, and the staffing are always child-centered.