Welcome

Thank you for your interest in the For the Seventh Generation program of the
Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association and its Foundation. Our goal is quite simple
– to support foster children in Metropolitan Detroit by providing them with the vital
services that the foster care system isn't equipped to provide.

What is Foster Care?

Michigan's foster care system serves children who have been removed from their
homes because of risk of (or actual) neglect or abuse. Metropolitan Detroit alone places
hundreds of children – from newborns to eighteen-year-olds – in foster care
every year. Metropolitan Detroit accounts for nearly forty percent of Michigan's foster-
youth caseload of  19,000 children.

Some of these foster children have never had a stable home. Many of them have
emotional, behavioral and medical problems. Volunteer foster parents are reimbursed
to provide the basics, like food and shelter, but there is no funding to provide foster
children with the additional things they need not just to survive, but to thrive.

For The Seventh Generation exists to make that vital difference for Metropolitan Detroit's
foster care children. Our program, which is a partnership between the DMBA, the
3rd Judicial Circuit Court and the Michigan Department of Human Services, supports
children currently in foster care or transitioning from care regardless of the nature
of the need, the professional who is identifying the need, or funding limitations.

A Unique, Low-Overhead Program Supporting Foster Children

How do we do it? We don't have an office and our staff is minimal. Instead of red tape
and paperwork, volunteer professionals like orthodontists, optometrists, counselors –
even music and dance instructors – are matched with individual foster children who
need their support via this website.

It can be as simple as one service to one child, one time per year.

In other words, we do not ask for a long-term commitment, but many of our volunteers
have been so happy with their experience that they have eagerly exceeded their ongoing
commitment and developed an ongoing relationship with “their” child – and recruited
other volunteers into the program.

Whether you are considering donating your time and talents to support the foster children
of our community or are a juvenile justice professional seeking additional support for a
child or family in need, we are committed to offering you the highest quality service we
can. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer or making a donation, please click
here to learn more. If you're a juvenile justice professional, visit this page to see how we
can help you support a child. And if you have further questions, please click here to be
taken to our FAQ page.

Like the child returning the starfish to the sea, For The Seventh Generation seeks
to save one child at a time. Together we can save many when each of us saves only one.
It is as simple as One Child – One Contribution – One Year.