Governor Stein Proclaims Kinship Care Month

Kinship Care Month

2025

By The Governor Of The State Of North Carolina

A Proclamation

Whereas, the youth of North Carolina are our most precious resource and our hope for the future, and all children deserve a safe, loving, and nurturing place to call home; and

Whereas, approximately 10,500 children and youth are in the foster care system in North Carolina, with about 31 percent placed in kinship care; and

Whereas, kinship care proves to be one of the most vital structures for providing North Carolina’s children with love, dignity, and belonging and ensures a sense of physical and emotional safety; and

Whereas, kinship families open their homes and hearts to children whose families are in crisis and play a vital role in helping children and families heal and reunify while launching children into successful adulthood; and

Whereas, North Carolina encourages the preservation of kinship care connections as one of its transformational goals while honoring kinship caregivers and their crucial role in serving young people; and

Whereas, numerous individuals, communities, and public and private organizations work to increase public awareness of the unique needs of children in foster care placed with kinship care providers and of the enduring and valuable contributions made by kinship families; and

Whereas, the Kinship Foster Care and Guardianship Assistance Program (KinGAP) offers financial assistance and Medicaid for youth who are determined to be in a permanent family setting and unlikely to obtain permanency through reunification or adoption, and this helps to maintain continuity of care for children outside of traditional foster homes; and

Whereas, Kinship Care Month is an opportunity to recognize the kinship care providers who open their hearts to provide children with a sense of connection, security, and ties to their culture, family, and community – as well as child welfare professionals and advocates working to ensure children’s safety, permanence, and well-being – and to spread awareness on behalf of the children in kinship care; and

Whereas, the state of North Carolina encourages people to volunteer their time, energy, and talents on behalf of children in foster care and their biological families, kinship caregivers, and foster parents during this month and throughout the year;

Now, Therefore, I, Josh Stein, Governor of the State of North Carolina, do hereby proclaim September 2025 as “Kinship Care Month” in North Carolina and commend its observance to all citizens.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Great Seal of the State of North Carolina at the Capitol in Raleigh this twenty-first day of August in the year of our Lord two thousand and twenty-fifth and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.