If you’re exploring foster care, you may be surprised to learn there isn’t just one type of foster parent. Children enter foster care with different needs and circumstances, so there are several kinds of foster homes that play important roles in Nebraska’s child welfare system.
Understanding these different types of foster care can help you determine where your family might fit—and which organizations can best support you.
Traditional Foster Care
Traditional foster care is the primary focus of Christian Heritage.
Traditional foster parents care for children who cannot safely remain with their biological parents due to abuse, neglect, or other family crises. The placement is temporary, with the goal of providing children with a safe, stable, and loving home while their parents work toward reunification whenever possible.
As a licensed child-placing agency in Nebraska, Christian Heritage recruits, trains, licenses, and supports traditional foster families throughout the licensing journey and beyond.
Emergency Foster Care
Sometimes children need a safe home immediately, with little or no notice.
Emergency foster parents are willing to receive placements on short notice—sometimes in the middle of the night or within just a few hours. These placements provide children with immediate safety during a crisis.
Emergency placements are often temporary while a longer-term plan is developed, but they can also become long-term placements if the child is a good fit for the family and no move is necessary.
Families interested in emergency placements should be prepared for uncertainty and flexibility, while recognizing that they may become an important long-term support for a child.
Respite Foster Care
Respite care provides short-term care for children who are already placed with another foster family.
Every foster family occasionally needs a break—whether for a family vacation, medical procedure, training, or simply time to recharge. During those times, another licensed foster family can step in to care for the child for a few days.
Respite care is one of the most practical ways foster families support one another. It helps prevent caregiver burnout, strengthens foster parent retention, and ensures children continue receiving excellent care.
Many families choose to begin by providing respite before accepting full-time placements. It’s a meaningful way to gain experience while serving both children and fellow foster parents.
Kinship and Relative Foster Care
Whenever possible, Nebraska first looks for relatives or close family friends who can care for children entering foster care. This is known as kinship and relative foster care.
Kinship placements help children remain connected to familiar people, schools, communities, and family relationships during an incredibly difficult season.
Because of a recent decision by Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, kinship foster homes are supported directly through the state rather than through private child-placing agencies like Christian Heritage.
While we strongly value and appreciate the vital role kinship caregivers play, Christian Heritage does not license or provide ongoing support to kinship foster homes.
Therapeutic Foster Care
Some children have experienced significant trauma or have medical, emotional, or behavioral needs that require specialized care.
Therapeutic foster parents receive additional training and work closely with therapists, medical providers, and behavioral health professionals to meet these children’s unique needs.
Several excellent organizations across Nebraska specialize in therapeutic foster care. Christian Heritage focuses specifically on supporting traditional foster families and does not provide therapeutic foster care services.
Which Type of Foster Care Is Right for You?
Every type of foster care serves an important purpose, and every child deserves a family equipped to meet their needs.
Some families are drawn to emergency placements because they can respond quickly during a crisis. Others enjoy providing respite care to encourage fellow foster parents. Many feel called to welcome children into their home through traditional foster care and walk with them for months—or sometimes longer—as they pursue stability and healing.
The best fit depends on your family’s strengths, availability, and sense of calling.
Interested in Becoming a Licensed Foster Parent?
Every safe and loving foster home makes a lasting difference in the life of a child. As a foster parent, you would make an eternal impact on the life of a child.
At Christian Heritage, we specialize in licensing and supporting traditional foster families in a Christ-centered environment. If you become licensed through us, our team will walk alongside you through training, licensing, placement, and ongoing support so you never have to navigate foster care alone.
If you’re considering becoming a foster parent in Nebraska, we encourage you first, to pray, and second, simply learn more. Reach out today and we’ll help guide you and pray with (and for) you as you start your foster care journey.
