I feel like where I have made the most difference is the support I give to our foster families.
While it is always exciting to go out and recruit new foster families, I get even more excited when families who have already been licensed and have experienced the ups and downs of being a foster parent say yes to renewing their license.
I have had two newer foster parents this past month question whether they wanted to continue and stated that they were feeling like maybe they weren’t cut out for being foster parents after all. One sent me a text message saying “I’m not sure how I feel about keeping our license open. Is that normal?” I responded with “It is absolutely normal to feel that way, I have felt that way many times myself over the years as a foster parent! Parenting in general isn’t easy, and foster parenting is a whole other ball game!”
Another foster parent who had recently just became licensed and taken in 3 kids said “I just don’t think I can do this anymore.” I was able to reassure her and tell her that even though she may not see it in herself, we see how much they are doing for these kids, meeting the kids needs, advocating for them and giving them a safe place to call home when they need it the most.
I think being a foster parent myself can often times really help our families feel like they can confide in me and really tell me how they’re feeling.
I hope that being able to tell them that I have felt those same feelings at times can hopefully help them feel more at ease that they’re not the only ones sometimes questioning their ability to do this.
Without them, who would be there for these kids 24/7, taking them to doctor appointments, therapy appointments, hugging them and telling them to have a great day at school, showing them a little grace when they’re having a rough time after getting home from parenting time.
Helping support these amazing families who step up for these kids when no one else will is such a wonderful role, and I try my best each and every day to be there for them in any way possible.
Longstanding, experienced foster parents who feel supported are key to being able to provide trauma-informed, consistent care for these kids. And sometimes that little break to catch up in life and catch their breath, can make or break a family’s decision to keep a child in their care.
