The Greatest Threat To Montana
Beneath its scenic beauty and deeply rooted communities, Montana has a dark side. Residents pride themselves on looking out for their own, but in reality, our state is facing a crisis — one that threatens the most precious and vulnerable among us, our children. Abuse and neglect are tearing Montana’s families apart, leaving wounded children to bear the scars alone.
The greatest threat our state faces is the loss of our children to the cycle of trauma that claims those without a family to care for them.
Each year, 2,200 Montana children enter foster care due to abuse and neglect, but there are less than half that number of licensed foster families to care for them. So what happens to these children as they age out of the foster care system without a loving, reliable family to protect and guide them toward a better future?
According to the National Foster Youth Institute:
- 20% of the children who age out of foster care at the age of 18 instantly become homeless,
- 50% of these teens will go on to develop a substance dependance.
- 70% girls who age out of foster care will get pregnant before the age of 21, and
- 60% of young men who age out and are legally emancipated are convicted of a crime.
These kids have never been shown another way, never been told they are worth so much more. Without the intervention of a family, these innocent children are doomed to repeat the cycle they were born into and sentenced to a future as dark as their past.
And the children aren’t the only ones who pay the price. On average, every youth that ages out of foster care costs taxpayers and communities $300,000 in social costs throughout their lifetime. For Montanans, that’s an average of $16.2 million a year, every year. And that money does little to alter the circumstances of the individuals it’s supposed to benefit. Instead, it goes toward drug intervention, unemployment payments, jails and other social costs that could have been prevented.
Sadly, children who never find the love and support of a family often grow up to struggle in the same ways their own parents did. Poverty, addiction and illness breed in the space where a child’s need for safety, relationships and hope go unmet. And they will in turn pass on the same fate to their own children — unless we do something.
These children and our state need families to step up and fight back against this crisis. Every child is a masterpiece worthy of being seen. Child Bridge is committed to raising up and empowering the families who will say to them, “I see you. You matter. You belong here.”
This life-changing work cannot happen without you. You have the chance to help find those families, end the cycle and change the lives of children who need you.
The Greatest Threat To Montana
Beneath its scenic beauty and deeply rooted communities, Montana has a dark side. Residents pride themselves on looking out for their own, but in reality, our state is facing a crisis — one that threatens the most precious and vulnerable among us, our children. Abuse and neglect are tearing Montana’s families apart, leaving wounded children to bear the scars alone.
The greatest threat our state faces is the loss of our children to the cycle of trauma that claims those without a family to care for them.
Each year, 2,200 Montana children enter foster care due to abuse and neglect, but there are less than half that number of licensed foster families to care for them. So what happens to these children as they age out of the foster care system without a loving, reliable family to protect and guide them toward a better future?
According to the National Foster Youth Institute:
- 20% of the children who age out of foster care at the age of 18 instantly become homeless,
- 50% of these teens will go on to develop a substance dependance.
- 70% girls who age out of foster care will get pregnant before the age of 21, and
- 60% of young men who age out and are legally emancipated are convicted of a crime.
These kids have never been shown another way, never been told they are worth so much more. Without the intervention of a family, these innocent children are doomed to repeat the cycle they were born into and sentenced to a future as dark as their past.
And the children aren’t the only ones who pay the price. On average, every youth that ages out of foster care costs taxpayers and communities $300,000 in social costs throughout their lifetime. For Montanans, that’s an average of $16.2 million a year, every year. And that money does little to alter the circumstances of the individuals it’s supposed to benefit. Instead, it goes toward drug intervention, unemployment payments, jails and other social costs that could have been prevented.
Sadly, children who never find the love and support of a family often grow up to struggle in the same ways their own parents did. Poverty, addiction and illness breed in the space where a child’s need for safety, relationships and hope go unmet. And they will in turn pass on the same fate to their own children — unless we do something.
These children and our state need families to step up and fight back against this crisis. Every child is a masterpiece worthy of being seen. Child Bridge is committed to raising up and empowering the families who will say to them, “I see you. You matter. You belong here.”
This life-changing work cannot happen without you. You have the chance to help find those families, end the cycle and change the lives of children who need you.