MORGANTOWN – Around 6,000 children and teens are currently in foster care in West Virginia.
With the Mountain State’s population of 1.7 million, that’s one of the highest per-capita rates in the nation chronicling a segment of youth often set adrift, for lack of resources and care.
“West Virginia does not need more sympathy,” Greg Clutter said. “We need shared responsibility.”
Clutter is director of Chestnut Mountain Village, which is an outreach ministry of Chestnut Mountain Range, a faith-based refuge near Morgantown for boys and young men fleeing abusive, dangerous circumstances – be it in their homes or on the streets.
The Village is hosting its fifth annual “All In Foster Care Summit,” bringing a host of faith leaders and other advocates who will discuss and workshop ways to better tend to one of the Mountain State’s more vulnerable populations.
“Building the Way Together” is the theme of the 2026 gathering, which will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday at Chestnut Ridge Church in Morgantown.
The panel includes a trio of nationally known panelists who are advocates in child welfare and faith-based engagement.
Andy Cook, the CEO and president of Promise686, the Georgia-based group that helps place children with families is on the bill for the day.
He’ll lead discussions and breakout sessions with Brian Mavis, whose Colorado-based America’s Kids Belong organization does the same.
Also on the panel is Jason Weber, the national director of the More than Enough organization in Virginia, which serves as a resource for first-time foster parents.
For all three, faith is a logical part of the societal infrastructure for such children and such circumstances, they said.
“Churches provide relational support,” Cook said. “Agencies provide professional expertise. When those strengths align, families thrive – and children gain stability.”
Visit https://cmvwv.org for more information and to register.
Chestnut Mountain Ranch was founded in 2004 by Steve Finn, a former police detective who worked with youth gangs in Atlanta before returning to his native West Virginia to launch the ministry.
