Aid to Adoption of Special Kids

The mission of Aid to Adoption of Special Kids (AASK) is to ensure that every child has someone who cares. AASK is Arizona's largest non-profit organization with the sole focus of finding relationships for children in foster care. AASK connects children with foster families, adoptive families, siblings, kin, and adult mentors.

At our very core, we believe relationships matter. Children living in group home settings can feel unwanted, unimportant, and forgotten. Our dedicated teams work tirelessly to match children with potential families so that they can have the support and guidance from a truly loving family.

Through small, every day moments like family dinners, inside jokes, and picture taking, AASK families are helping children in foster care break down their walls, build their confidence, and feel at home.

On any given day, AASK foster families care for 1,400 children. Over half of the families are part of the kinship program, where the child is cared for by a known adult, most commonly a family member. To help support these families AASK has a team of Family Specialists that help kinship foster families navigate the foster care system, identify community resources, offer trainings, and provide behavioral and health care support.

Additionally, AASK offers mentorship and sibling connection programs that receive no government funding. The sibling connection program reunites siblings separated in foster care including a week long AASK Sibling Camp. Our mentorship program matches children living in group homes with adult mentors and specifically focuses on teens that are "aging out" of the foster care system.

Testimonials

The Mentoring Program provided by Aid to Adoption of Special Kids (AASK) is a unique service in Arizona that provides foster youth living in group homes and shelters with 1:1 relationships with caring adult mentors who support them in developing positive connections, self-esteem and the skills to make positive choices in life. AASK recruits, screens, trains, matches and supports volunteer mentors for foster youth, with an emphasis on finding mentors for teens at-risk of "aging out" of foster care at 18 without a family. One of these kids is Ashley.

As a teenager who has spent years in the foster care system moving from home to home, Ashley was eager to have a mentor. Not only would she have someone who she could talk to, get her nails done with, and enjoy her favorite French Fries with, she would have a trusted adult who could help her prepare for a successful transition to independent adulthood when she aged out of the system.

Her mentor, Julie, was the person Ashley needed. Together they have built a strong relationship where they not only share countless laughs, but Julie helps Ashley check things off her "to-do" list; such as getting her driver's permit, communicating better with coworkers, and learning financial literacy to set Ashley up for the future.

With Julie by her side, Ashley knows she has someone in her corner to help her navigate the bumps that come with early adulthood as well as a confidant to have fun with. In fact, the pair took a road trip together, further solidifying their unbreakable bond.