“Neighbor to Neighbor gives us a model to follow that allows us to help families stay together,” says Lankford. “[Unlike traditional programs] we are able to work with birth parents and let them know that they are part of something different.”

Neighbor to Neighbor’s statistics speak to the success of the program. 95% of foster parents remain in the program and 99% of siblings who are not reunited with their birth parents are adopted by their foster parents.
Neighbor to Neighbor aggressively reaches out to birth parents and extended family, giving them access to treatment facilities, services within Hull House and regular visitation. Birth parents are given a voice in the child’s welfare process. Case managers, therapists, foster care givers, family advocates and birth parents all work together as a team, building an open line of communication regarding decisions and recommendations affecting the children.

Angelia Jackson-Phelon, 40, remembers the day, six years ago, when her four children were taken by the DCFS (Department of Children and Family Services) and placed in the Neighbor to Neighbor program. Looking back, Jackson-Phelon—who at the time was a drug addict—would have never believed that she would be grateful for Neighbor to Neighbor, but she is. After 26 months of hard work, Jackson-Phelon was reunited with all of her children. Knowing that there was a team of people who supported her and wanted her to get back on track was important to her success.

“I had never thought that people outside of family could care about you,” she says. “To have come from the street and then be brought into a group where everyone cared about me—from the caseworker to the therapist and foster parent—it was, like, wow. To this day, I’m still in communication with these people. I can call to vent or simply to share. I love them.”