About AASK

The Children We Serve

More than 10,500 children reside in Arizona’s foster care system. These children enter the system by no fault of their own and often come from backgrounds filled with abuse, neglect and pain. Sadly, the family and community relationships that most children experience growing up are nonexistent for foster children. No one will remember their birthday; take them to the park; or cheer for them when they graduate from high school. They most likely will move from home to home and live life with only their dignity and self respect to truly call their own.

Who We Are

AASK (Aid to Adoption of Special Kids) is a private non-profit charity that was founded in 1988 with the mission of serving children in Arizona’s foster care system. Local philanthropist and child advocate, Katherine “Kax” Herberger, founded AASK with the strong belief that all children need homes and families, regardless of their backgrounds and unique challenges. Since its inception, AASK has been dedicated to Katherine’s vision of ensuring every foster child has someone who cares.

Licensed by the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES), AASK leads the effort in recruiting families through on-going community outreach, including 12News Wednesday’s Child and 3TV Are you my family? Strong advocacy and lifelong family support by knowledgeable specialists has helped AASK facilitate over 1,600 adoptions, with 95% remaining in place to this day.

What We Do

Through our adoption, fostering and mentoring programs, AASK works to match quality families and individuals with children in need of love. Our focus is maximizing the experience of each child through building strong relationships that will last a lifetime. AASK’s adoption program helps children find a permanent home with a family that can best meet their needs; the fostering program serves as a way for children to seek stability with a family while away from their biological parents, with the end goal of reunification; and AASK’s two mentoring programs pair committed adults with foster children from five to 21 years old.

What We Believe

AASK’s vision is simple: ensuring that every foster child has someone who cares. We believe every child deserves the opportunity to build trusting relationships that will nurture them into becoming responsible, productive citizens. All of our programs are designed to allow qualified families and individuals of diverse backgrounds to have this important relationship with a foster child. No child should age out of the foster care system without someone who cares and AASK is committed to ensuring every child has a better future.

Signature Programs

Adoption Program
There are many children in Arizona’s foster care system who are available for adoption. AASK's full-service adoption program helps families bring foster children into their homes and hearts for a lifetime. Our knowledgeable staff provides families with on-going support from the adoption certification process to post-placement advocacy. Our adoption services include:

• Child and family matching services
• Post-placement monitoring and advocacy
• Family support services
• Todos Los Ninos program for Hispanic families
• Birth Parent program

Fostering Program There is an unprecedented 10,500 children in the Arizona foster care system today, and a vital need for more loving foster families to care for them. AASK’s foster care program gives families the opportunity to have a positive impact on the lives of children who have come into the state’s care. Our foster care services include:

• Child and family matching services
• Post-placement monitoring and advocacy
• Family support services
• Largest licensed Kinship program in the state
• Specialized Medical program for medically fragile infants and DDD children
• Todos Los Ninos Program for Hispanic families

Mentoring Program
Mentoring a child or teen in foster care helps guarantee them that there is someone who cares. A mentor gives the child assurance that they are not alone in dealing with day-to-day stresses and worries. Through the AASK Mentoring program, volunteers can choose from two different age groups based on their personal interests and mentoring skills. For the younger foster youth, ages 5 to 17, a mentor is more of a family to the child, joining them in activities they enjoy. For the older youth, ages 18 to 21, a mentor is a conduit for the youth and their passage into adulthood.

Volunteer Program
AASK has many opportunities for individuals and groups to help children in the Arizona foster care system. From event volunteers to those who work directly with the children; from one hour a month to hundreds of hours a year, AASK has a volunteer opportunity to fit anyone’s unique skills and schedule.

Wednesday’s Child
AASK’s partnerships with Channel 12 (KPNX) and The Arizona Republic allow us to profile children available for adoption as part of the weekly Wednesday’s Child segment. AASK’s goal is to raise awareness to the need for adoptive and foster parents as well as showcase the wonderful children who are looking for their forever family.

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• press room
• about us summary
• myths & realities
• download press kit (pdf)
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Media Contact

Melissa Gable
Director of Development & Marketing
mgable@aask-az.org
Office: 602.930.4409