“Thank you, Congresswoman Bass, for that warm introduction and for this honor. I also want to thank Wendy and Dean for hosting this event and welcoming us.

“It has been my distinct pleasure to support and partner with this organization on behalf of the thousands of youth in Los Angeles County who are in or have exited, the child welfare system.

When the Board of Supervisors convened the Blue Ribbon Commission on Child Protection in 2013, we learned how important it was to a child’s well-being for all involved stakeholders to work in a complementary manner to achieve the same goals.The Board approved the Commission’s recommendations in 2014. That same year, the National Foster Youth Institute was founded by the Hon. Karen Bass. We’ve been running on parallel tracks ever since, taking on issues of substance, and working in a complementary manner to achieve the same goals.

Source: Board of Supervisors Chairman Mark Ridley-Thomas on receiving the National Foster Youth Institute’s 2017 Champion of Children and Youth Award – Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas