CSAM2018 BBQ

August is Child Support Awareness Month

 

Child Support Awareness Month has been recognized every August across the nation with outreach events for all to learn about Child Support Services. 

In previous years, child support agencies in California have put together outreach events across the state for employers and parents at farmer’s markets, and at job fairs, in an effort to provide information and resources to their communities. Other outreach events from El Dorado County have included mailers, telephone calls, and in person meetings at our offices during business and non-business hours, and at the county jail.

With the COVID-19 pandemic and California’s required social distancing, the usual robust event planning for Child Support Awareness Month this year was severely curtailed. Still some creative child support agencies across the state have forged ahead with modified events to provide support to families and promote helpful programs to their communities. Courthouses are closed and money is tight, but many caseworkers are actively reaching out with new information on debt reduction and safer payment options, sometimes via text message.

“Awareness” is so much more than simple service delivery, and the 2020 Child Support Awareness Month efforts statewide highlight the great strides California Child Support Services and the 49 county and regional offices have made in updating their services and service model to be more relevant to today’s co-parenting families. The events planned for this year’s socially-distanced Awareness Month continue to offer parents options for successful co-parenting, and vividly illustrate the theme of this year’s campaign: “Families Have Changed a Lot.  So Has Child Support.”