About Us
One Church One Child, established as a national minority adoption recruitment program, was founded in 1980 by the late Father George Clements in the state of Illinois. One Church One Child was born out of Illinois' adoption crisis in the 1970s - a disproportionate number of African American children available for adoption lingering in the foster care system. In 1979, 70% of children waiting to be adopted in Chicago were the African American out of a child population of 26% African American in Chicago. What became evident was that this type of disproportionality was nationwide.
As a Catholic pastor of one of the largest predominantly African American churches in Chicago and colleague with fellow Baptist and Methodist activist pastors in Chicago's African American communities, Father Clements was identified as a key individual to bridge the existing gap between the state and the African American community. In working with Father Clements an alliance was formed between church and state which brought together African American ministers, adoptive parents and the Department of Children and Family Services. The efforts "to find one family in every one African American church in Illinois to adopt one child" was coined by Father Clements as One Church, One Child.
Who are we?...
One Church, One Child is a nationally recognized non-profit special recruitment program designed to find homes for children in the foster care system. The OCOC model utilizes an organized method of reaching out to the community through churches and other organizations to increase the awareness for the need of children in the child welfare system who have been abused and neglected.
Our mission...
Our mission is to inform the community and faith-based organizations of the need for safe and nurturing home for children in foster care, specifically African American children.
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Our method...
Our recruitment offers a simple challenge to faith-based and other community organizations to assist in identifying from its membership at least one family or individual that is willing to provide a safe and nurturing home for children who have been displaced (homeless) and in the foster care system.