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 >>
My name is Sharon McBride, and I am the 57 year old relative caregiver to my four year old granddaughter Abbie, and her half-sister, Layla, 6. In March of 2012 their mother began using drugs, and I became concerned for the girls’ welfare. I called child protective services, and the girls were removed from their Read more >>
I am a 56 year old retired musician and teacher raising two grandchildren, one of whom is autistic, with my wife who is 53. We also expect to take in the children’s brother, our grandson, who has also been diagnosed with autism. The children, aged 7, 6 and 3 were taken from their home and Read more >>