Parents are invited to visit the Department of Child Support Services during August, Child Support Awareness Month, to learn about resources available to their families, including the ways the department can assist them in supporting their children.
“We work with mothers and fathers because children do better when both of their parents are involved, even when they are no longer together,” said Child Support Services Director Marie Girulat. “We want the community to know we are here to support and work with all of the parents who have child support.”
During Mondays with DCSS, the department will host representatives from social service agencies each Monday in the Loma Linda office at 10417 Mountain View Avenue, from 9 a.m. to 4p.m. While child support customers wait to meet with their case workers, they will have the chance to meet with staff from other County departments and agencies that can provide services to their families. This year, Behavioral Health, Children’s Network, Preschool Services, First 5, Women, Infants & Children (WIC), Transitional Assistance, will be providing information to Child Support customers during Mondays with DCSS.
As part of the awareness month, DCSS staff will also be attending additional community outreach events. The department will also launch a social media child support awareness campaign on Facebook and Instagram and display an advertisement on the eastbound 10 freeway in Loma Linda and street banners in San Bernardino.
By raising awareness about the services it provides, DCSS directly supports the Countywide Vision to promote family self-sufficiency and reduce childhood poverty throughout the county.
DCSS assists families by establishing orders for child and medical support, establishing parentage, locating absent parents, enforcing support orders, and collecting and distributing child support payments. DCSS is focused on helping the whole family with all aspects of services to gain self-sufficiency. DCSS is responsible for a caseload of approximately 112,000 cases with annual collections exceeding $177 million.