Tennessee Kids Belong works to improve the experiences and outcomes for kids in foster care in Tennessee.
Our Programs
Family
Recruitment
Our flagship video storytelling project, I Belong ProjectTM, elevates the faces, voices and stories of kids in foster care who are legally free to be adopted to connect them with forever families.
Community
Engagement
Our innovative Foster Friendly program and app engage area businesses, faith communities and nonprofits to support kinship and foster parents with discounts, resources and support.
Coalitions for
Change
TKB has collaborated with the past two governors’ administrations to launch successful foster care initiatives that have helped the state exceed its recruitment and permanency goals five years in a row!
Our Team
Kristin Allender
Executive Director
A social worker, entrepreneur and TBRI® practitioner, Kristin has worked in foster care and adoption for 20 years. Her visionary leadership has resulted in innovative solutions that bring together faith communities, businesses, partners and creative individuals to help children and families thrive.
Kristin Miller
Faith Engagement Director
Kristin has been an advocate for vulnerable kids and families as both a nurse practitioner and change-maker for foster and adoptive families in Knoxville and beyond. She and her husband, Jeremy, adopted two daughters from Ghana in 2013 and have two biological sons.
Liz Zinke
Marketing Director
Liz brings skills from roles in music, marketing and nonprofits to every project for Tennessee Kids Belong. Whether working with a small, grassroots organization or a national brand, her heartbeat is to give a voice to the vulnerable. She has a passion for partnership and strives to make the right connections to create lasting change.
Hilari Williams
I Belong Project & Events Manager
Hilari is an adoptive mom with over a decade of professional experience working alongside some of the largest influencers and brands in the world. She holds two degrees from Vanderbilt University, is a two-time bone marrow donor, and wants to continue doing her part to make the world a kinder, more joyful place.
Melissa Whitlock
Donor Relations & Social Media Manager
Melissa is a creative entrepreneur with a heart for supporting foster and adoptive families. She launched and led Bloom Family Designs, gifting beautiful bedrooms to children in foster care and those being adopted for almost 10 years. Her experience in child-advocacy, non-profit leadership, and community relations work creates pathways for many in our community to find their unique role in supporting children in foster care.
Sarah Sullivan
Programs Coordinator
From early in her life, one of Sarah’s passions has been seeing kids placed in a family – finding their place to belong and be loved. With Tennessee Kids Belong, she uses her skills in events, relationship-building and church leadership to live out this passion each day. Sarah helps share kids’ stories and supports foster families through our I Belong Project, Foster Friendly Business Program and Foster Friendly App.
Emily Barnes
Foster Friendly Business Manager
Emily holds degrees in Elementary Education, Learning Behavior Specialist, Spanish, and a Master’s in Educational Leadership and was adopted from South Korea as a child. She leans on her experiences to ensure all children feel seen, valued, and loved. Emily loves volunteering in the community with her therapy dog, Hank, and will often be seen visiting with him at our I Belong Projects.
Community Engagement Team
Tiffany Kelley
Child Welfare Director
As a professional in the Child Welfare System for 15+ years, Tiffany has worked within the public and private sectors, including for-profit and non-profit organizations. She has a heart for supporting and stabilizing children and families “This is my calling as well as my passion.”
Katie Dunlap
Community Engagement Director
As a social worker, pastor’s wife and adoptive mom, Katie works to equip faith communities and other local groups to actively engage in foster care and adoption throughout Memphis. She works seamlessly with partners to implement WRAP Around Care and other foster family support programs.
Aisha Ward
Northeast Region
Aisha brings a decade of experience raising awareness about the need for more foster parents and being a voice for vulnerable children in child welfare to her work with TKB. As long as there is a kid in need of a home, Aisha will be in the community, looking for solutions.
Amanda Griffin
South Central Region
As a former foster parent and children’s pastor, Amanda has a passion for advocating for vulnerable kids and families. Before joining the team, Amanda led a WRAP Team supporting foster families in her area. At her core, she is an incredible teacher, longing to help others grow and learn.
Tracy Taplin
East Region
Tracy has advocated for vulnerable children and families for over 25 years as an adoptive parent, educator, ministry leader and TBRI® Practitioner. Connecting people and resources to create positive outcomes for kids is no easy feat, but Tracy knows it is worth it – every time.
Charlotte Richardson
Tennessee Valley Region
Charlotte brings frontline experience serving foster families from her time as a foster care case manager with DCS. She is excited to use her passion for child welfare and love of advocacy to encourage her community to support foster care in the community.
Jo Wafler
Northwest & Southwest Regions
Building collaboration between faith-based organizations and community partners is one of Joanna’s core passions.
As a social worker, she desires to equip others with the skills, tools, and resources they need to serve their communities well.
Kaylin Campbell
Davidson County
Kaylin brings years of experience in education and a deep passion of advocating for vulnerable children. She is driven by the belief that every child deserves connection and safety. Kaylin is committed to empowering people from all backgrounds to give their unique resources to meet this need.
Our Board
Crissy Haslam
Chairman
As First Lady of Tennessee from 2011-2019 Crissy advocated for many important children’s issues including foster care and adoption, parent engagement in education and reading proficiency across the state. She supported Imagination Library, literacy initiatives and Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs). She and Bill have three children and eight grandchildren.
Mark Cate
President
Stones River Group
Mark is founder and president of a public affairs firm in Nashville. He formerly served as a gubernatorial Chief of Staff, where he focused on education, child welfare and other public policy issues affecting families and kids. Mark has supported Tennessee Kids Belong since its inception.
Steve Martinez
CEO & President Stonewood Entertainment
Steve has served the music industry as an agent, promoter, and artist manager for almost 25 years. In 2015, he relocated to Franklin, TN to start Stonewood Entertainment. After learning of national organization America’s Kids Belong’s mission, Steve and his wife, Jen, registered for PATH training and got involved with Tennessee Kids Belong.
April Britt
Chief Experience Officer
Studio Bank
April’s leadership has led Studio Bank to be recognized as one of the Nashville Business Journal’s ‘Best Places to Work. In 2020, she launched the Studio Women’s Collective, where over 800 area leaders connect, create, and collaborate together. April has been an engaged supporter for years, assisting with our organization’s banking needs and more.
Ryan McBride
Pastor
Ridgedale Baptist Church
Ryan was introduced to the world of foster care just a few years ago at a TKB event in Chattanooga. Upon learning of the need for the church to step up, he said “Yes” to partnering with TKB to serve vulnerable children in the Chattanooga area. Ryan is married to Emily. They have 3 kids, and he is a pastor at Ridgedale Baptist Church.
Chris Tyrrell
Director of Operations
Resilient Love
Chris earned his graduate degree in theological studies and nonprofit governance and currently works in the mental health field. He cares deeply about strengthening and supporting parents and families and is passionate about advocating for individuals with developmental and physical disabilities. He and his wife have three beautiful daughters and one large dog named Boomer.
Katy Valesky
Treasurer
Katy has advocated in the child welfare system in Tennessee for 15+ years with a focus on influencing policy for at-risk youth, especially those aging out without a supportive adult.
Katy holds an MSSW from The University of Tennessee.
Download Tennessee Kids Belong’s 2024 Annual Report
FAQs
Here are answers to some common questions we receive about Tennessee Kids Belong.
About TKB
The Tennessee Kids Belong team covers all of Tennessee. Our central office is located in The Lodge, located at 1229 Lakeview Dr., Franklin, TN 37067. We have employees remotely located in Memphis, Chattanooga, Knoxville and Kingsport.
Tennessee Kids Belong officially launched in January 2016. Since February 2018 TKB has been an affiliate of America’s Kids Belong, with our own 501c(3) and board of directors. Our Tax ID# 82-4703564.
We are not a faith-based non-profit as we work with government, business, creatives, and faith communities. We do a lot of work with churches as Foster Friendly partners to recruit and provide support to help retain foster families.
Yes, we do.
Tennessee Kids Belong is an affiliate of America’s Kids Belong, which means we work in support of our shared mission and leverages AKB’s shared-services structure to help our affiliate operate efficiently and keep our state-based resources focused on achieving the mission.
About Our Work
No. All inquiries submitted are immediately directed to the Department of Children’s Services which assesses the potential match with the child. Please note – the first families who are considered are those with current home studies. If you have not heard back after submitting an inquiry, please email: Karen Chamberlain.
The only information we have available to share is in the child’s bio. The Department of Children’s Services works hard to protect the dignity and confidentiality of each child. Please submit an inquiry online if you would like to be considered as a potential family and learn more about a child.
Yes! Please do. This is the best way for each child to get the exposure they need to find just the right family. It may be one of your friend’s friends who sees the video and makes the decision to inquire about this specific child OR start them on a foster care journey.
Our goal is to educate the community to recognize the deepest need for children in foster care isn’t adoption; it’s belonging. Whether they find that with a foster, birth, adoptive, respite or support family, children deserve to experience unconditional belonging. Sixty percent of children in the state’s foster care system are eventually reunified with their birth families. We continually advocate for the beauty of reunification when it is safe for the child.
There are so many great nonprofits in this state doing incredible work. Many are meeting specific local needs. TKB works on a statewide macro level, equipping leaders in various sectors to make a difference for kids in foster care. We often refer groups to opportunities and needs that other non profits are meeting. We cheer on others in this space and believe collaboration is key.
Every day we meet individuals and families who are considering taking the leap to become foster parents. We know you probably have a lot of questions and would need more answers before committing. That’s normal. We host frequent panels, in-person and virtually, where you can hear from current foster families, child welfare professionals, and former foster youth.
Tennessee Kids Belong has a partnership with the Department of Children’s Services to complete videos of children who are available for adoption in TN. What this means- parental rights have been terminated, and at this point, there is not a permanent plan or family identified for the child. Children are often living in group homes or in foster family homes that are unable to keep them long term.
Work and Volunteer with TKB
Occasionally we have opportunities come up where we could use some help. This is often around the times of our monthly I Belong Project™ video shoots. Volunteers could be helpful with organizing new clothing donations, props for the shoot, set up, clean up, etc. Please note that in order to attend a video shoot and work with the children there will be a background check completed, phone interview with one of our staff, and training the day of the event. We have a very limited number of spaces available for these opportunities.
Fill out our volunteer form, so we can know how to best utilize your help. We are working throughout the state of TN and will contact you when needs arise in your area!
If you are interested in internship opportunities, email your resume to: info@tnkidsbelong.org and include “Internship Position” in your subject line.
Other employment opportunities will be posted on our social media or on Idealist
We are growing, so check back often!
About Funding
Your continued support will be used to:
- Apply cross-sector expertise to unite and engage government, faith, business & creative communities
- Form sustainable support systems for foster, adoptive, birth and at-risk families
- Host high-quality video shoots for waiting kids proven to increase their chances of adoption
- Provide trauma training and resources to churches and businesses to turn TN into the most “Foster Friendly” state in the country!
- Lead advocacy and awareness campaigns to turn an invisible issue into a growing initiative
Tennessee Kids Belong is funded through generous individual donors, grants and foundations who believe in our mission and vision of improving the experiences and outcomes for Tennessee kids in foster care.