Susan Edelstein, founder and director of UCLA TIES for Families and an adjunct assistant professor of pediatrics in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, received an Advocate Award from RaiseAChild.US for her work on behalf of foster children and the families who raise them. RaiseAChild, a national organization that encourages the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community to build families through foster parenting and adoption, presented Edelstein with the award at its annual gala at the W Hotel in Hollywood on May 19.
UCLA TIES for Families promotes the successful growth, development and adoption of children with special needs who are in foster care. The program is located on the UCLA campus and works in close collaboration with community welfare and mental health systems. The program employs an innovative model of intervention to reduce barriers to the adoption of these children and support their successful transition into permanent homes with stable, nurturing families.
“Susan was one of the early leaders in recognizing that LGBT people are invaluable resources for the struggling U.S. foster care system,” said Rich Valenza, founder and executive director of RaiseAChild.US, whose own family used the services of TIES upon adopting two foster children. “She believed that LGBT people can be, and are, excellent parents.”
