This time of year is hard for many of our children. Mother’s Day brings up many memories…some pleasant, and others not as much. It’s a tender time for children who are displaced from their homes. As much as we listen and encourage and try to help children deal with the day, it still represents either a temporary or permanent loss for them.
We are privileged to serve as a foster home for many children on the campuses of The Crossnore School and The Children’s Home. It’s a difficult role to fulfill because children who come into care are often frightened, angry, or confused and their families may feel the same way. A common misconception about foster care is that the foster care provider’s goal is to keep children from their families. The truth is our goal is keep children safe and help them begin their journey towards healing. Hopefully, with some hard work, families can be reunited. We all celebrate when that happens!
The programs in Crossnore and Winston-Salem have good outcomes for these children. But group foster care is challenging for some children. They may need more one-on-one care or may react better to a smaller environment with less children. That’s where community foster families come in. These families are answering a call from God to take care of some of His most vulnerable children. They are willing to undergo training, licensure, and supervision to provide for-now families for displaced children.
For some children, their parents lose their parental rights and these children are looking for long-term foster families or adoptive families. They need a forever family. Forever families provide stability over the years, permanent connections, and a place for kids to come back home to on holidays.
North Carolina currently has more than 10,000 children in foster care. They need loving and safe homes. They need access to services that will help them heal. They need you to consider being their family, whether it is just for-now or forever.
Yes, it’s hard some days. But all parenting journeys are.
Yes, it stretches you and your family. But stretching helps us all grow.
It’s also filled with joy as you see children begin to heal. It’s filled with laughter when kids just get to be kids who love to have a good time. And at the end of the day, it’s filled with satisfaction when you know you are making a difference in the life of a child.
For more information about becoming a foster care or adoptive parent, please visit our website at www.crossnore.org/foster-care-adoptions.
