Foster parents have a new respect from me.

[terrehautian]

My mom does fostering and tomorrow she is saying goodbye to one of her fosters. She has had other fosters but most were under three years old. Now she has a 4,5 and 8 year old. The four year old is going home tomorrow. I don't know how they say good bye especially when they have been in her care for over a year.

 

[Dosproduction]

Would not want to go through that.

 

[Magneto]

We did the foster thing. We had a four month old and...it went badly. Lies, misrepresentation, and someone being taken advantage of all in the name of someone who just wanted to get high and a child was in her way. Having been there, those that can do it for an extended time are some wonderful people. I hate to say it but the lies of a drug addict put my wife in a depression she is still in 10 months later.

 

[terrehautian]

Would not want to go through that.

The previous fosters didn't really get attached to me or my wife, but the current three really do. I am glad I am getting the chance to say good bye before she goes home. I really hope that my mom can stay in contact with her parents so next summer she can see my wife and my child. The fosters were all really excited when we told my mom that she was going to be a grandma.

 

[flatlander]

My mom does fostering and tomorrow she is saying goodbye to one of her fosters. She has had other fosters but most were under three years old. Now she has a 4,5 and 8 year old. The four year old is going home tomorrow. I don't know how they say good bye especially when they have been in her care for over a year.

You both have a special place at the table in my opinion. In this matter, I can say I am truly an expert from the foster kids side. I was in a foster home from 3 days old until 8 yrs old. I was the 1st foster kid they ever had and I stayed the longest. I found out at 33 yrs old that they had tried to adopt me but the state wouldn't allow them ( it was changed the year after I left). That family had fostered over 100 kids by the time they stopped. They found me again after 25 years and we still stay in contact. Anybody that can foster kids are true heros. These kids come with all sorts of baggage and sometimes they are pretty damaged. Then there's the parents and the state to deal with. It is not an easy life but believe me when I say that kids remember those who are kind to them.

Bob

 

[Titanium_Frost]

It is really rough being a foster parent. We had two young ones of our own and thought we could help more kids and perhaps adopt so we could have a big family without having to get pregnant again.

Between the families the kids were taken from and the state taking advantage of everything it just wasn't what we wanted to be involved in. A lot of the kids that are taken I don't agree with because they were merely leverage. Leverage from the state to make the parents behave and leverage between their own flesh and blood relatives. Sad really.

We couldn't allow it to negatively affect our own kids anymore. Anyone with the gumption to stick with it and be the positive person in that mess while taking the blame and the negativity is a hero no doubt.

 

[Mike Elzinga]

Stayed tuned for a new non profit organization called "Fostering Hope". It is aimed at making dreams and aspirations come true for foster kids in Indiana. Facebook page and website will hopefully be up within a couple weeks, or email us at FosteringhopeIN@gmail.com to offer donations or assistance.