Paige Desmond
Anyone who has ever thought about adopting child or being a foster parent will want to attend an information session tonight (Oct. 15) from 7-9 p.m. at Family and Children’s Services here.
It will include presentations from a foster parent, a child who spent most of her life in foster care, an adult adoptee, and an adoptive family. Each one will last about 15 minutes, with time for questions afterwards.
They will be there “just to talk about the experiences,” explained local foster care co-ordinator Christa Little. “It’s not as scary as it seems.”
The evening is strictly about providing information. Those thinking about attending should know they will not be obligated to get involved simply by showing up.
Little said she understands the idea of foster parenting can be scary, adding the info night aims to help people get a better picture of what the experience might be like.
“Fostering can be an intimidating undertaking,” she admitted.
Because the format is like an open house or forum, without RSVPs, Little has no idea how many residents might show up. “We may have nobody that shows up and we may have 50 families,” she remarked.
“Even if I get one family who’s interested in fostering out of it,” the night would be a success, Little stressed. “Anybody helps.”
At the moment, FACS is in urgent need of more foster families, especially those with an eye on possibly adopting their foster child eventually.
“Our homes are fairly full right now,” she noted.
Little said if FACS has a situation where it needs to place children in a home immediately, especially siblings the agency would prefer to place together, the need for more homes becomes evident.
“We just run into challenges,” she described.
In a gesture of encouragement, Little reiterated how great the fostering experience can be.
“It is an incredibly rewarding experience being a foster parent that comes with challenges,” she said. “If you have questions, if you’ve ever wondered about it, [the information night] is your opportunity to come out and get some answers.”
Because tonight’s focus also is on adoption, Little outlined a new program called “Fostering With a View to Adopt,” which stresses the need for families willing to adopt the children they foster.
She spoke of a family which fostered a baby and, after a year, couldn’t imagine not having the child with them and adopted.
“It was just sort of a natural evolution to adopt,” Little explained.
The FACS office is located at 240 First St. E., Suite 200 (the old high school building). If you cannot attend tonight’s session but would like more information, contact Little at 274-7787 ext. 226.
