How One Woman Changed Foster Care in Georgia
When Sally Buchanan founded Creative Community Services (CCS) in 1982, she didn’t set out to transform Georgia’s child welfare system. What began as a mission to support adults with developmental disabilities soon grew into something far greater—a pioneering effort that reshaped therapeutic foster care in the state.
Her journey is a testament to the power of determination, innovation, and an unwavering belief that every child and adult deserves a safe, supportive home.
From Advocacy to Action: The Birth of CCS
Sally’s passion for helping others began in her teenage years. She spent her time volunteering at summer camps, leading holiday drives, and working with children in need. This deep-rooted desire to serve led her to a career advocating for individuals with developmental disabilities.
Before CCS existed, services for adults with developmental disabilities were extremely limited. There were few community-based programs, and many individuals faced institutionalization simply because they had nowhere else to go. Sally wanted to change that.
In the late 1970s, she launched Fulton County’s Semi-Independent Living Program, a groundbreaking initiative that helped adults with developmental disabilities gain life skills and independence. At the time, eligibility for services wasn’t restricted by IQ, allowing more individuals to receive the support they needed.
But then, policy changes threatened these services. Bureaucratic decisions limited care to standard business hours—ignoring the reality that adults with developmental disabilities needed support at home, in the evenings, and on weekends.
Rather than accept these limitations, Sally took action. With the encouragement of families she worked with, she founded Creative Community Services, a nonprofit dedicated to providing ongoing, community-based care.
Expanding the Mission: A New Approach to Fostering
In 1988, CCS’s mission expanded in response to another urgent need: Georgia’s foster youth. At the time, children with severe trauma and mental health challenges had few options. Many were placed in psychiatric facilities, sent out of state, or left to navigate homelessness. The traditional foster care system wasn’t equipped to handle their needs.
That’s when a legislator from Chatham County approached Sally with a bold idea: Could CCS apply its community-based approach to help these children?
Sally traveled to visit some of the out-of-state facilities where Georgia’s foster children were placed. What she saw was heartbreaking. Many of these youths also had developmental disabilities, and being far from home only deepened their trauma.
Determined to bring these children back into their communities, Sally helped establish Georgia’s first therapeutic foster care program. Unlike traditional fostering, therapeutic foster care provides intensive support to children who have experienced severe trauma, behavioral challenges, or developmental disabilities.
Under this model, therapeutic foster parents receive specialized training to care for children with high needs. They work closely with social workers, therapists, and behavioral specialists to provide a structured, healing environment.
The impact was immediate. The need was overwhelming. And the floodgates opened.
The Growth of CCS & Its Life-Changing Programs
Over the years, CCS has grown into a multi-faceted organization, offering specialized programs tailored to the needs of children and adults alike. Some of its most impactful programs include:
✅ Therapeutic Foster Care: Providing high-level care and stability for children with complex trauma.
✅ Teen Parent Connection: Supporting foster youth who are pregnant or parenting, helping them break the cycle of foster care.
✅ SOAR Program: A unique, in-home behavioral intervention program using Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to support foster youth.
✅ Adventure Youth Program: Offering respite and camp experiences to help foster youth build positive memories.
✅ Kinship Care: Helping children remain with relatives or trusted adults rather than entering traditional foster care.
One of CCS’s most pressing challenges today is the issue of “gap kids”—youth who age out of foster care but don’t qualify for developmental disability services due to arbitrary IQ cutoffs. These young adults often struggle with independence and face high risks of homelessness and exploitation.
CCS is working tirelessly to develop new programs that support these individuals into adulthood.
A Legacy of Change: The Impact of One Woman’s Vision
Sally Buchanan’s journey from advocate to leader in foster care has transformed countless lives. Thanks to her vision, hundreds of children and adults have found stability, safety, and the opportunity to thrive.
Her story is a powerful reminder that fostering is more than providing a home—it’s about creating a future. And whether through therapeutic foster care, kinship placements, or specialized programs, CCS continues to change lives every day.
How You Can Help
Not everyone can be a foster parent, but everyone can do something. Here’s how you can support CCS’s mission:
🔹 Become a Foster Parent or Host Home Provider: Open your home to a child or adult in need.
🔹 Donate: Help fund critical programs that go beyond state funding.
🔹 Volunteer: Support CCS’s community initiatives, from mentorship to holiday drives.
🔹 Spread the Word: Share CCS’s story and help raise awareness about the need for therapeutic foster parents and kinship care providers.
💙 Learn more about our history in an interview Sally participated in here.