Elevate (organization)

Elevate is a foster care organization that was started in the summer of 2005 in Des Moines, Iowa as a support group for foster and adopted youth. It was founded by Tammy Mahan, a social worker at Children and Families of Iowa. Tammy is also an adoptive and biological mom.

Elevate's activities have since expanded to numerous different types of advocacy. Membership includes current and former foster youth, adoptees from the foster care system and the biological children of foster and adoptive parents. Foster care alumni, social workers, foster and adoptive parents and juvenile attorneys function as supports for the group, but the majority of the decisions are made by the members or their governing council, the ECC. The ECC is comprised of Elevate's most motivated and active members.

Elevate is quickly becoming known for personal stories and passionate speakers, but also includes artwork, poetry and other writing. Any foster or adopted person or the child of foster or adoptive parents over the age of 7 can become an artist for Elevate and any one in these categories over the age of 13 can become a poet, speaker or writer for Elevate.

Elevate has had members speak at a number of different events around the country including dozens of events within the state of Iowa, the National Foster Parents Association[1] Conference in Texas, the National Center for Adoption Law and Policy [2] Symposium in Ohio, The It's My Life Conference [3] in Seattle and the presentation of a release of a New GAO Report on the Adoption of Children with Special Needs and a Senate Finance Committee Meeting, both in Washington DC.

Elevate currently has two DVDs available free of charge. One covers what it is like to be adopted or in foster care and the other is intended to help legal professionals work more cooperatively with foster youth on their caseloads.

The Elevate website is located at [4] and contains samples of member poetry, the Elevate song, stories of some of the members and adult supports, upcoming events, contact information and information on how to request copies of the DVDs.