For children coming into foster care, staying connected to family and friends is one of the most important things we can do to help them recover and reduce the trauma of being removed from home. That’s why by law children in foster care have a right to remain in their school of origin. I was Read more >>
When my two brothers and one sister entered foster care, I wanted them to come live with me. Unfortunately, my apartment didn’t meet the requirements of a foster home. This often happens to kin wishing to accept placement of relatives in foster care. My family and I were approved by the Department of Children and Read more >>
My name is Katelyn and I am a foster parent. My husband and I were approved through the RFA process in November 2017. Since December, we have had three young children placed in our home. Two have moved on to a kinship home and one has remained in our care for eight months. We are Read more >>
My name is Destiny Adams and I am caring for my two younger sisters who are in foster care. Previously, I shared my story here. What I want to reflect on today is my experience participating in a Child and Family Team (CFT) meeting. California requires that a CFT meeting be held within 60 days Read more >>
A few years ago, my husband and I became caregivers to our three nieces and nephew who were in foster care. As time passed, the two oldest girls moved out of our home after high school, our nephew moved to Mexico to live with his father, and we took guardianship of our youngest niece. My Read more >>
I first heard the word kinship/relative caregiver 15 years ago when I stepped in to care my niece, Kindra. She was just eight years old when I brought her into my home. At that time, the child welfare system in my county seemed unprepared to help and support me and I was left to navigate Read more >>
Maybe you are a kin caregiver like me: a grandparent, aunt, or cousin who has stepped in to raise a child whose birth parents are struggling with addiction or mental illness. Perhaps you are a policymaker, in a position to make decisions that affect families like mine. Or maybe you are an advocate who wants Read more >>
Destiny Adams was driving on Balboa Boulevard, on the way to visit her two younger sisters, when she got the call. The courts had just ordered the sisters, Lisa, 13, and Nicole, 16 (names have been changed), to be removed from their father’s care. A social worker from the Department of Children and Family Services Read more >>
My name is Tiffany Soto. I was 29 when I made a decision that changed my life forever. My nephew, Elijah, was in the hospital after my sister’s boyfriend repeatedly beat and abused him. He was 2 years old and in foster care. I was scared, and even though my career was just starting and Read more >>
My name is Anna Vargas, and I am a single mother caring for my six year old daughter. My niece, Nicka, was placed in foster care as an infant and spent time in multiple homes. I couldn’t bear the inconsistencies of her early life, so I decided to give her a stable home. Before Nicka Read more >>