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Kids in foster care have to adjust to a whole new set of rules, routines, and sometimes culture when they change homes.  They struggle with feeling accepted, longing for their birth parents, and learning to heal from the hurts they’ve experienced.  The foster parents at Youth For Christ do an amazing job of loving these kids right where they are at and helping to propel them forward in every area of development.  They also do whatever they can to make their kids feel special and a part of the family for as long or short of a time that they are there.

 I would like to highlight one of my families who have really devoted their past 8 months to helping two of these kids.  This family capitalizes on the strength of their foster kids and let them shine in the areas where they are strong.   They have special movie nights, play dates, and cooking times.  Every night, these girls will dance in the living room with their foster dad, as it is their favorite activity.    They love being “princesses” and have a chest full of play clothes.  One special evening, their foster mom bought the girls and the foster dad tickets to a “Father-Daughter Dance.”  These girls were able to dress like princesses, dance all night, and be accompanied by their “dad.”  There is a scripture that says, “The lonely will be healed in families.”  I believe this is true.

 Katie Bass

I walk in the doors of YFC  and enjoy watching the visit happening between some birth parents and their kids.   Busyness is all around, and kids are in visit rooms and in hallways.  I decide to go get the mail, and as I walk around the hallway, there is a finger pointed in my face, “It’s her fault. She did it.”  With no further explanation, the woman continues in the room, and I decide…A quick run to Starbucks is definitely in order for today.

Upon my return, I see a clown getting out of his car.  A clown…at YFC…this is going to be a very interesting day.   I meet “Chuckaloo” in the lobby of the building and find balloon animals in all of the children’s hands.  Some days YFC feels like a circus, but today…it really is a circus.  I spend a half hour with Chuckaloo in a visit and am surrounded by balloon bears, flowers, and dogs.   I also end up with a turtle on my wrist.  Thanks Chuckaloo!  After all of the chocolate cake, presents and guests, the visit is over and a van hauls away the 1 year old and all of her new treasures. 

Reports are getting written, calls are being made, little fires are being put out and some are getting bigger.  Will someone be able to watch a kid on my caseload for a week?  Did that child’s fever go down?  Is my cell phone dieing again?  Can I go on vacation?  Who just got added to my caseload?  Is it my turn to blog?

There is one more visit to help with today.   I will get in and get out.  What’s that? You want pictures of all three of you?  Of course!    Camera…don’t fail me now.  Everyone on the couch!  You…out from under the table. Uncover your eyes.  Put that tongue back in…well…that’ll do. 

Whew…today is over and I realize…there’s nothing that I would rather be doing. 

At Youth For Christ, there are foster parents who come from different backgrounds and locations, as well as range in age.  There is another group of people at Youth For Christ who are in a category of their own, who faithfully serve children and biological parents: Single Foster Moms.

I have seen these women accept children into their home on a moment’s notice and love them like their own.  A couple of our single foster moms have mentored the biological moms of these children and have done successful return homes.  One foster mom developed a relationship with the teen biological mom and allowed her to come into her home and learn how to parent.  All of these moms have poured their energy, time, and love into children, regardless of the final plan.  They are a special breed of women.

Foster care is a journey of different joys and challenges.  These women decided to jump on the ride, despite not having a partner to share it with.  They saw a need and decided to step in and help.  I am not only encouraged by their example, but challenged by their selfless act.  Let me leave you with this: There are many children and teens in desperate need of loving homes.  Could you be the one they need?

Orphans… We usually think of orphans as a thing of the past, but there are many young people with no parents, no family, and no place to call home.  Many teens in the system long to have a family of their own, to belong and be special to someone.  

Teens have a deep desire to be accepted and loved, and they will find “family” anywhere.  Oftentimes, the street becomes a place for these kids, a breeding ground for further destruction.  These kids are bright, vibrant, beautiful and bold.  They want to play basketball, do well in school, and eat dinner at a table with a family.  They long to go somewhere for Thanksgiving and Christmas where they feel welcome and enjoyed. 

At YFC, we work with many different foster families who are licensed to take in kids of various ages.   There are a few who have taken in these “forgotten jewels,” and have invested their time and life into them.   They will forever be changed because of the commitment they made to them and the new start that each family has given them.  There are many more teens out there, longing to be loved, longing to be accepted, and longing for someone to tell them they are worth fighting for.  I wonder…who will take them?

Katie Bass

Holidays can be hard for our birth parents, as they are separated from their children, and often times spend it alone.   One of our foster families has a special heart for birth parents and their children to reunite.   This past Thanksgiving, they opened up their home to the birth mom, who would have had nowhere else to go.    The foster mom and birth mom cooked dinner side by side as the kids and foster dad played in the living room.   They were able to co-parent and be a “blended” family for the holidays.  

The relationship between birth parents and foster parents can be a very delicate one.  If possible, we love to see mentor relationships happen between them, but know that there are many factors that can be in the way of maintaining a healthy relationship.  Sometimes, all that our birth parents need is someone to love them, give them a kind word, and treat them with the dignity that they have not always been shown.   This alone can help a parent to keep fighting for their kids and their own lives.  It can also give them open eyes to see how amazing they have been created.

The vision and hope at Youth For Christ is for restored families and relationships.  As a staff, we are not able to complete this mission without the help of our foster families.   They are the ones who can offer a “life on life” relationship to their foster children’s parents and continue to be healthy resource to them in the future.