ENChildren's Care Week 2025
MY EYES NEED YOUR EYES
From June 30 to July 5, Children's Care Week will take place throughout Lithuania. This year's symbol for Children's Care Week is the gaze, human connection, and eye contact, emphasizing its importance. Human connection is one of the main elements of social interactions, and eye contact is associated with building relationships and emotional closeness.
The main communication idea is to invite society to open their eyes and see those who need help, and, if possible, to assist, accept, and foster. Parents are encouraged to pay more attention to their children. The aim is to bring society back to its roots – to not be afraid to look into each other's eyes without additional distractions, as a gaze holds much love, encouragement, support, and answers.
Members of society are invited to see various ways they can contribute to the activities of care centers and the well-being of children who have lost parental care: they are encouraged to become permanent guardians, temporary caregivers, or regular foster parents. If they are unable to do so at the moment, they are invited to volunteer, support the foster care community, and spread positive messages about childcare to people in their close environment.
During Children's Care Awareness Week, various events and activities will take place in each municipality, including writing postcards to loved ones. We invite you to follow the news about the events organized by care centers, where you will have the opportunity to write a postcard to a dear person with a wish, and the care centers will later take them to the post office for sending.
About the events: In Lithuania, Foster Care Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of July. To draw attention to child foster care and foster parents, and to change negative societal attitudes towards child foster care, the Project Administration Team has initiated and, together with Project partners and foster care centers, implemented a week of child foster care events in each municipality for the past five years. In 2025, the foster care week will be held for the sixth time in Lithuania. In addition to numerous events in each municipality, the summer festival "Children are Children" for foster families has been held for the past four years, with participation from all Lithuanian foster care centers, foster parents and foster children, representatives of Lithuanian city and district municipalities, and city guests. This year, the festival will be held for the fifth time.
03/06/2025 Kaunas City
Event "Run for the Child's Future" in Kaunas City Ąžuolynas Park, a celebration for foster families and city residents. There will be a symbolic run for the child's future, followed by a celebration with entertainment for city residents and foster families.
01/07/2025 Trakai District, Užutrakis Manor Estate, European Hall
Conference to commemorate the major changes in the child foster care system in Lithuania from 2014-2024 and visits to a foster care center and a foster family's home:
Conference dedicated to a decade of changes in the field of child foster care, utilizing EU investments. Speakers: Representatives from the Office of the President of the Republic of Lithuania, the Ministry of Social Security and Labour of the Republic of Lithuania, the State Child Rights Protection and Adoption Service, and reform participants - representatives who carried out the reform and those who were/are direct beneficiaries. Number of participants in person: 300. Participants: Politicians, representatives of the reform and the ministry, representatives of child rights protection and social services institutions, and members of the public who did not directly participate in the reform activities.
Visit to Trakai District: Family and Child Support Center, which includes a foster care center that cares for children who have lost parental care and are growing up in families, and a visit to a foster family's home that cares for children from Trakai District who are in unsafe home environments or have been placed in temporary foster care.
Visit in the city of Vilnius: SOS Children’s Villages, where a foster care center operates, providing services to foster families and children in care. During the meeting, innovative programs used by specialists will be presented: Teen Triple P, Multidimensional Family Therapy, and PuP (Parents Under Pressure).
02/07/2025 Press conference at the Presidential Palace on July 2
Press Conference – On the Occasion of Foster Care Week, Visit to a Foster Care Center, Meetings with Families Who Foster Children
Press conference, official opening of Foster Care Week with a social campaign, a brief statement by the European Commission at the press conference about the progress of child foster care in Lithuania and comparison with the European Union, state and municipal institution leaders discuss the situation of child foster care in Lithuania, famous people invite residents to change their attitudes towards foster children and to invite children who have lost parental care into their homes.
05/07/2025 The Fifth Summer Festival for Foster Families and Meeting with a Family Fostering Children
Trakai District, Paluknys Airfield: The Fifth Summer Festival for Foster Families "Children are Children".
The festival is a uniquely special event - it brings together the entire Lithuanian foster care community - foster parents, temporary and permanent caregivers, family homes, adoptive parents and their fostered, adopted children and family members, along with the staff of foster care centers, municipal representatives, child rights protection workers, guests from the Ministry of Social Security and Labour, politicians. Each foster care center has its own tent where various activities are organized. During the festival, there are concerts, stage performances, and various entertainment activities for children throughout the area. The festival closes with a unique tradition - the staff caring for foster families sing a specially created anthem for them and pass a special statue to the next city mayor who will organize the festival next year. Traditionally, the festival takes place in a different municipality each year. About 5000 people participate in the festival. Since last year, the festival has been open to the general public to promote greater community involvement.
Note: Events are held in all 60 municipalities. The detailed plan of events across Lithuania will be published starting June 15th at globoscentrai.lt
| Date | Events | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Vilkaviškis District: Visit to a Foster Care Center, Foster Families, and the Start of the "So That All Children Grow Up in Families!" Hike | ||
| 30/06/2025 |
Meeting with the leaders of Vilkaviškis District Municipality and foster care center specialists. Presentation of the foster care center's activities, discussion. Visit to permanent foster families. Visit to Paežeriai Manor, where participants of the "So That All Children Grow Up in Families!" hike will be greeted and sent off. There will be an open opportunity to communicate with foster families. |
Vilkaviškis District
Municipality, S. Nėries St. 1, Vilkaviškis; Paežeriai Manor Estate, Dvaro St. 6, Paežeriai Village, Šeimenos Eldership, Vilkaviškis District |
| Kaunas City: Event “Run for a Child’s Tomorrow” in Ąžuolynas Park | ||
| 30/06/2025 | The event “Run for a Child’s Tomorrow” in Kaunas City’s Ąžuolynas Park is a celebration for foster families and city residents. A symbolic run for a child’s future will take place, followed by a festive gathering with entertainment for both the public and foster families. | Ąžuolynas Park, Kaunas |
| Tauragė District: Opening of the Foster Families Photography Exhibition and Open Discussion with Residents about Child Foster Care | ||
| 30/06/2025 | Opening of the photography exhibition of temporary caregivers and foster families in Tauragė District. Open discussion with Tauragė District residents about foster care. There will be an open opportunity to communicate with foster families. | Tauragė, exact location to be confirmed |
| Šiauliai District: Celebration for Foster Families and Residents, and Visit to Foster Families | ||
| 03/07/2025 |
|
Šiauliai District, Kuršėnai, Pramonės St. 2, Šiauliai District, Kuršėnai Family Home |
| Rokiškis District: Day Camp for Foster Families by the Lake | ||
| 02/07/2025 | Day camp for foster parents and children at a lakeside campsite. Planned activities: sports competitions: relays, games, tasks; educational activities: face painting, art therapy sessions, etc.; picnic: cooking porridge over a campfire, spinning cotton candy, etc. During the camp, participants will create a joint drawing on a specific theme, which will later be exhibited. There will be an open opportunity to communicate with foster families. | Lakeside campsite in Rokiškis District |
| Telšiai District: Visit to Foster Families and Foster Parents' Community and Appreciation Event | ||
| 04/07/2025 |
1) Visit to temporary caregivers and foster families. Meeting with foster care center staff to discuss activities, achievements, and challenges. 2) Holy Mass for foster families – an event where the entire community of foster parents, foster care center, municipal representatives, and Telšiai District residents gather in prayer for foster families. Foster parents receive acknowledgments from Members of Parliament and the Mayor. After the Holy Mass, a rose bush is traditionally planted in the churchyard, followed by cozy conversations among attendees, and children engage in interesting activities and meet each other. |
Telšiai City, Telšiai District |
