DeAnna Alonso and her husband became foster parents overnight for three relatives in 2006, and they struggled to find services to provide help. At that point, she knew Mid-Missouri had to change the way it serviced foster youth and parents because she had experienced the old system.
Voices of Infuence
Jefferson City is lucky to have generations of women who have tremendous impacts on their companies and the community. Five women are featured in the Oct. 29, 2018, issue of #jcmo Inside Business as "Voices of Influence" in the business community.As a passionate former fostered youth, she organized a group of foster parents and adoptive parents and found a solution.
Alonso is now president and chief executive officer of the Central Missouri Foster Care & Adoption Association, an organization devoted to keeping children safe while providing education and support for adoptive parents and fostered youth.
"The numbers haven't decreased much since I was in foster care, and one of the ways in which we can inform folks is to advocate on behalf of the kids who are in foster care," she said.
She added: "I think it's because of my kids I wanted a better life for them, I didn't want them to experience the things that I experienced," Alonso said. "And more importantly, there are a half-million kids in foster care. And a lot of those kids, if they are over the age of 9, they will not have a family, they will not be adopted."
Since 2010, CMFCAA has been a nonprofit agency serving Audrain, Boone, Callaway, Camden, Cole, Laclede, Maries, Miller, Moniteau, Morgan, Osage, Phelps and Pulaski counties. A Boone County location opened in 2017. The organization assists more than 600 families.
"My passion is around the ability to support our most vulnerable kids and youth in a way that will impact them to empower them to encourage them," Alonso said.
Along with national recognitions, CMFCAA is the first Mid-Missouri program to receive the AmeriCorps grant for AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service to America (Vista). The year-long program links volunteers to an organization and is a resource for community involvement.
One of her biggest accomplishments, excluding raising four children, was her involvement with the Foster Care Bill of Rights signed by former Gov. Eric Greitens in July 2017. The bill puts the needs of children in the system first and includes measures for growth in the future.
Between advocating for youth, parenting and school, Alonso is a member of Jefferson City Young Professionals, Missouri Coalition on Children's Agencies and Missouri State Affiliate National Foster Care Association. She plans to complete her master's degree in social work, policy planning and administration in 2019.
Editor's note: Answers have been edited for length and clarity.
Q. Who influenced you early in your career, and how did they do so?
"I remember in residential treatment that there was this 'lumberjack man,' and he would sing me lyrics from a Rolling Stones song, 'You don't always get what you want. You get what you need.' And I remember that man to this day because the world doesn't owe you anything. We have to give back; it's our role to give back to society in a way that will protect our citizens that will care for them and will allow them to encouraged and empowered to give back. One of my professors at Lincoln, Dr. Word, was super incredible, and she always stood by me."
Q. How do you want to influence your company or the community?
"Influence to me means to take an opportunity to build a relationship, to learn about the needs of your community in a way that you can impact them for sustainability. Foster care is temporary. And if I could influence anything, it would be to encourage those who work in policy and those who work on the transformative measures of these kids that have been abused and neglected to look at foster care for what it is, which is temporary."
Q. What drives you as a businesswoman?
"Impact and outcomes; I like data. I want to make sure that the investment that we are making has real long-term impact."
Q. What advice would you give to young women starting a career?
"Take it slow and steady. If you don't slow down, take a real good look at what you're doing and put mentors around you. You'll find that there will be more barriers and more obstacles that didn't need to be met in the first place."
This article appears in the Oct. 29, 2018 issue of #jcmo Inside Business.