We are a family-led nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting foster, kinship, and adoptive families of children and youth with disabilities and other special needs. We offer critical resource tools to empower families to advocate for better special education, behavioral health and other services for the children in their care. Services to Northern Virginia parents, caregivers and family-serving professionals include training and events, peer supports, resource navigation and parenting and youth classes.
Formed Families Forward’s mission is to improve developmental, educational, social, emotional and post-secondary outcomes for children and youth with disabilities and other special needs through provision of information, training and support to adoptive and foster parents, and kinship caregivers.
Find our Equity Commitment statement HERE.
View a brief video overview of what FFF is and does HERE.
A Snapshot infographic about FFF’s outcomes in 2024 is HERE.
Directions to Formed Families Forward Offices can be found HERE.
Learn more about Board and volunteer opportunities by clicking on the DONATE button above.
A financial statement is available upon written request from Virginia’s Office of Charitable and Regulatory Programs.
Data sources:
Casanueva et al., 2020 & 2023, National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) Child Well-Being Spotlight and Research Brief; 2007 National Survey of Children’s Health and 2007 National Survey of Adoptive Parents; Smithgall et al., cited in National Working Group on Foster Care and Education, December 2008; Zetter et al., 2004; Bay Area study, cited in National Working Group on Foster Care and Education, December 2008; Tirella, Chan, & Miller, 2006; Beverly et al., 2008; Geenen & Powers, cited in National Working Group on Foster Care and Education, December 2008; Lightfoot, Hill & LaLiberte, 2011; Tarren-Sweeney, 2013
*AFCARS- Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families
A special educator by profession, Kelly is a former public school teacher of students with emotional and behavioral disorders, and has worked in national and federal special education policy and research settings. Kelly’s family is formed in part through public foster care and adoption. Her young adult sons have a range of learning, behavioral, medical and cognitive disabilities. Pulling from her personal lived and professional experiences, Kelly consults with and trains adoptive, foster and kinship families and professional partners on special education and related topics. She also serves on numerous advisory boards and committees.
Kelly earned a Ph.D. in Special Education from the University of Maryland College Park and served as an Executive Branch Policy fellow for the Society for Research in Child Development. In addition to her work at FFF, Kelly serves as part-time instructional faculty at George Mason University, training special education teachers. Kelly believes that when formed families have information and tools to advocate for critical educational services, their children and youth experience improved academic, social emotional, and behavioral outcomes. Email Kelly at Kelly.Henderson@FormedFamiliesForward.org.
Veronica Ferris is a proud big sister through adoption. She strongly values family and community service. Veronica is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Namibia 2015-2017) and an AmeriCorps alumna (Baltimore City Public Schools 2020-2021). She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the College of William & Mary and a Master’s degree from American University. After her AmeriCorps service, she managed a literacy tutoring program for underserved elementary school students at several DC public and charter schools. Outside of her work at FFF, she connects older adults in Alexandria, VA to social opportunities and services with At Home in Alexandria. She also manages membership, volunteer onboarding, and communications.
At FFF, Veronica supports registrations, data collection and reporting, and social media among other administrative tasks. Email Veronica at Veronica.Ferris@FormedFamiliesForward.org.
Rachel Hamilton is a former teacher who has taught various grade levels and subjects in the United States and in three foreign countries. She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Education and Masters in Education in Instructional Technology. She and her husband, who is a retired Army officer, have three children, who were adopted through domestic and international adoptions. Throughout Rachel’s professional and personal experiences, she has helped others navigate supports for mental health, physical health, learning difficulties, and frequent military family relocations. She gained extensive experience with developing 504 Plans and Individualized Education Programs (IEP) both for her children and others. Rachel has years of experience helping her teen and young adult children deal with a broad range of learning, behavioral, medical, and cognitive disabilities.
Rachel is highly involved in her community by serving on a state board that advocates for mental health, working as a family support group facilitator, and serving as an instructor. She has also served as a Master Trainer with Army Family Team Building, a Master Trainer with the Girl Scouts of America and a teacher and leader of children and adults in her church. She looks forward to sharing her experiences and helping others at Formed Families Forward. Email Rachel at Rachel.Hamilton@FormedFamiliesForward.org.
Renee is a graduate of the University of Maryland and The Pennsylvania State University. She is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist who worked in both the Prince William County, VA and Charles County, MD school systems before “retiring” to become a full-time mom and community volunteer. In addition to her professional training and experience with special education, Renee has personally navigated the system for two of her children, one of whom was adopted from China. At FFF, Renee is committed to providing parents and caregivers with user friendly resources to help them access the special education and disability services their children need to be successful. Email Renee at Renee.Myers@FormedFamiliesForward.org.
Melissa is the mom of seven children and has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland. She has spent most of her career in Early Childhood Education, leading and directing preschool programs. In 2014, Melissa and her husband started doing foster care. They have had over 19 children live in their home and hearts and have adopted four children through Fauquier County Department of Social Services.
Melissa is a Registered Raising Kids with Big, Baffling Behaviors Course Facilitator and works with parents and educators to support children who have been affected by trauma through foster care, adoption, and children with vulnerable nervous systems. As an adoptee, a former foster parent, and an adoptive mother, she is passionate about helping others through this journey. She also enjoys working with educators and parents to help them understand the complexity of children, their behaviors and how to meet them where they are. Email Melissa at Melissa.Lebling@FormedFamiliesForward.org.
Andrea Darmawan graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Mary Washington in December 2023. She was a member of the UMW chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha, the national honor society for political science, and received the Outstanding Student in Political Science Award in the spring of 2023. As a person with a disability herself, Andrea is passionate about making content accessible for all audiences. She assists FFF with a variety of tasks, including display improvements for FFF’s online resources and advising on how to optimize media formats for maximum accessibility. Andrea has also used her research experience to create a comprehensive report on the state of FASD policy in Virginia. Outside of FFF, she volunteers her time assisting the communications team at the Lamb Center, a resource center for the unhoused in Fairfax.
Stacia began her career as an elementary school teacher in Fauquier County, VA. After 8 years in the public school system, she left to pursue a doctorate in early childhood education and literacy. As a teacher educator, she taught graduate courses to pre-service and in-service teachers. She has extensive experience in qualitative research focused on issues of equity and social justice in education, presenting her research at national and international conferences and publishing numerous journal articles and book chapters. She also co-authored a book on effective anti-racist professional development for teachers. In 2013, Stacia and her husband grew their family through foster/adoption. She is now a strong advocate for them and for others who have experienced trauma and are living with FASD, providing training sessions for local classroom teachers and administrators on these issues. Email Stacia at Stacia.Stribling@FormedFamiliesForward.org.
Bianca Martin is a Certified Peer Recovery Specialist who serves the community by using her lived experience. Bianca and her husband are former kinship foster parents with Fairfax County and have legal custody of their nephew, who has mental health and learning challenges. Bianca has experience navigating special education for her family and other families. She has served as a Family Support Partner at another nonprofit organization, and works part time at public school. At FFF, Bianca co-facilitates peer-led support groups for foster, adoptive and kinship parents and caregivers.
Elisa is an experienced program evaluator who has worked with nonprofits to support meaningful project review and improvement. She is currently a freelance writer and evaluator on multiple projects in the areas of early childhood and child welfare. She served as Project Director for School Readiness Consulting, as well as Director of Research for the National Council for Adoption. As mom to four, including three children adopted from China, Elisa is personally and professionally familiar with the challenges that some adoptive and foster families experience and is dedicated to conducting sensitive yet comprehensive evaluation.
Sarah is a kinship caregiver to three grandchildren in the northern Virginia area. Formerly an executive administrator with the federal government, Sarah has worked part time as a parent liaison in a local Fairfax County elementary school and is the past Vice President of Kinship for FACES of Virginia Families (now NewFound Families). She is a member of the federal Advisory Council to Support Grandparents Raising Grandchildren convened by US Department of Health and Human Services. Sarah served as FFF’s Family Resource Coordinator from 2011 to 2020; she now consults with FFF on issues related to kinship care regionally and statewide.
Ray Gonzales is a foster parent for youth with high levels of trauma as well as proud adoptive dad of his 13-year-old daughter.
Ray is an accomplished business, operations, and human resources executive. As the Executive Director of City Dogs & City Kitties Rescue, he oversees all aspects of the rescue which saves over a 1000 dogs and cats each year.
Ray has extensive nonprofit management experience. He was the co-founder and director of East Bay Animal Rescue and Refuge, a 501(c)(3) organization in California’s Bay Area. His experience there included organizational management, volunteer engagement, rescue and animal care, pet adoption, and fundraising. Additionally, Ray has led, trained, and coached large teams of people and managed operations for over 65 locations over 20 years while in the role of Regional Director for Safeway. He has a track record of strong leadership, successful growth, and building collaborative community relationships.
Ray is a graduate of Arizona State University with a Bachelor of Science (BS) in Political Science. He is a Society of Human Resources Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) as well as a Professional in Human Resources (PHR).
Monique is a mother to two children and a grandparent caregiver for her 16-year-old grandson who she has raised. Monique is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 22 years of experience. She works with the Federal Government and has a private practice. Monique works with individuals across the lifespan, with a focus on adolescents, young adults, and kinship families. Many of her clients have found great success managing life challenges. Monique is particularly sensitive to people facing issues related to mental health, finding resources, anxiety, depression, trauma, and family wellness. Monique’s approach is rooted in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, Attachment Theory and Family Systems Theory, which are evidence-based approaches to treatment that focus on helping clients holistically, mind, body, and spirit.
Alisa is a proud wife, mother and grandmother. An 18-year resident of Virginia, Alisa is a realtor, community advocate, peer support specialist and kinship caregiver. Alisa is the current Chair of the VDSS Parent Advocacy Council, and was the recipient of the 2024 Governor’s Volunteerism & Community Service Award for Outstanding Adult. Alisa is currently a Realtor® with REAL Broker. She is also a trainer and facilitator for many organizations. Alisa loves to see those with lived experience working in mental health, kinship care and foster care to help support those in crisis. Alisa loves to travel and spend time with her family. She is excited and honored to be among the FFF family!
Anahita Renner is a mom, foster mom, immigrant, and community volunteer.
She and her husband Chris have been certified as foster and adoptive parents since 2017. They have fostered three infants and provided respite care for countless others, in addition to caring for their birth son who was born in 2019. She and her husband have been motivated to become foster parents by witnessing the situations of their school friends in foster care as well as the experience of Chris’s father, who was adopted by his foster family. Anahita also serves as an appointed parent representative to the State Executive Council for Children’s Services.
Ana and her family live in the City of Fairfax.
Demetrius Stewart is a Washington, D.C. native and currently resides in Northern Virginia. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Psychology with a minor in Christian Counseling.
Volunteerism and mentoring young people fuel her passion of giving back to her community. Mrs. Stewart is well aware of the challenges teenagers, young adults and families may face in today’s society. Mrs. Stewart possesses a wealth of knowledge and experience through volunteerism, education, and avocation community outreach.
Nancy is a mom to one adult daughter who she and her husband adopted as an infant 18 years ago. She is a retired lawyer with experience in Law School administration, corporate compliance, policy making and regulation. During the past 12 years, she has been active in PTA leadership in Fairfax County and has extensive IEP advocacy experience. As a parent to a young adult on the autism spectrum, Nancy is committed to improving academic services and expanding post-graduate opportunities for students with disabilities in Virginia.
J-Lynn Van Pelt is a proud single mom to three neurodiverse children who were adopted from foster care. She currently serves as a foster family with the City of Alexandria and has been a past fictive kin placement for students and their siblings.
For 25 years J-Lynn has worked in education as a teacher, reading specialist, principal, Director of Special Education, district administrator, and charter school founder. For the last five years she has worked in private schools specializing in building programs for students with disabilities and students who are twice-exceptional (2e). She currently is the Director of Learning Services at Georgetown Day School in Washington DC. She also worked on the 988 lifeline for crisis management and suicide prevention. J-Lynn has deep experience with crisis prevention for individuals with FASD, autism, and mental health challenges. As an advocate for education equity and inclusion, J-Lynn presentd professional nationally on topics of literacy, differentiation, neurodevelopmental disabilities, and 2e students. J-Lynn has served on the the Children, Youth and Families Collaborative Commission (CYFCC) and Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC) in the City of Alexandria, as well as the Governing Board for the Greater Washington Chapter of the Virginia State Literacy Association.
Diana has worked with families throughout her career as both a classroom teacher and a school administrator. Currently, she works for Fairfax County Public Schools in their Family Resource Center. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Boston College and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Manhattanville College. Living as a military spouse for the past 16 years, Diana has travelled all over the United States and overseas. She and her husband have an adopted son and a biological daughter. She is passionate about building relationships with families and ensuring that they have access to the supports and services that they need.
