OUR TEAM

STAFF

Jennifer Smith
Executive Director
Bethann Jackson
Operations Coordinator
Melanie McCracken
Director of Communications and Training
Jocelyn Wilson
Director of Church Engagement
Mike Kraft
Pastoral Church Engagement
Alex Wallendorff
Church Engagement Specialist
Laura Fischer
Church Engagement Specialist

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Teresa McCaleb
Board President
Melody McCrea
Board Secretary
Mike Sharrow
Board Member
Fred Wall
Board Treasurer
Dr. Jeffrey E Kantor
Board Member
Aaron Banks
Board Member
Mark Carvajal
Board Member

HISTORY

The South Texas Alliance for Orphans was created by a group of foster/adopt industry veterans including our Founder and Executive Director, church leaders, foster/adopt families and child placing agency professionals in 2012 under the name San Antonio Alliance for Orphans. We met monthly for 2 years collaborating on how we the church could unite and fulfill our biblical mandate to care for orphans in the foster/adopt system.

A small team including our Executive Director, a board member and a small team of foster parents successfully launched a ministry at their church and started handing off the model to other churches desiring to see ministry happen in their church.

Over the years, our Executive Director gleaned wisdom from other area models across the state and nation like Fostering Hope Austin, Embrace Texas, Hope Fort Worth, Project 127, Promises 686 and Christian Alliance for Orphans In 2015, the name of the Alliance was changed to more adequately represent the region we serve of South Texas.

In September of 2016, First Presbyterian granted the Alliance seed money to launch as a DBA non-profit. The Alliance is now poised to equip, educate and support a collaborative church movement to solve the foster crisis from family crisis to youth aging out.

Impact

27

AGENCIES & NONPROFITS WORKING TOGETHER

50

CHURCHES CURRENTLY INVOLVED

210

FAMILIES RECRUITED

1500

INDIVIDUALS ACTIVATED TO SERVE