A must-see program to watch to commemorate National Foster Care Month in May is “Foster Care Stories: A Place to Be,” a short documentary that airs on public television.

The film, produced by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Bill Whiteford, looks at a diverse group of people involved in foster care in Maryland.

Social workers are featured in the documentary, including Judith Schagrin, the National Association of Social Workers 2004 Social Worker of the Year and assistant director for children’s services at the Baltimore County Department of Social Services.

Another social worker in the documentary is Lorelei Schaffhausen. Schaffhausen was also an associate producer of the film.

“We wanted to show a combination of diverse ethnic groups, and make a neighborhood, family-based film,” she said. “We wanted to do a film about permanency, the complicated situations, and multiple possibilities involved in foster care.”

To watch the film online click here. You can find out more about National Foster Care Month by visiting this Web site. And to learn more about  how social workers help foster children check out the NASW’s “Help Starts Here” Adoptions and Foster Care Web page by clicking here.