Children needing placement are an average of 8 years old and many of them have been in foster care for several years. Targeting potential families for this overrepresented group is essential.

As a result of parental neglect, Joshua, 7, and his 9-year-old brother Shawn were removed from their birth family and placed in foster care when they were 3 and 5 years old. Since then, Joshua and Shawn have been in 12 different placements and have lived together in the same foster home only once. These two African-American boys ask constantly if they will ever be able to live together as brothers and have a family again. They want someone who will love them and whom they can love. They want someone with whom they can play basketball and eat pizza. They want a loving family. Joshua and Shawn want a home.

Comments (5)

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beltrams

  ?   +1 -1

Part of the problem now is that there are so MANY kids in foster care that it's just plain difficult to place them. Why are there so many? Well, because there are so many people having babies that just aren't suitable as parents. Absent fathers, drugs, absent fathers, government trying to substitute for dad, etc. What foster care system could possibly keep up with the destruction of families that 45 years of Great Society programs have wrought?

 

Posted 4 months ago  Reply  Link Abusive

epsteinpats

  ?   +2 -3

This is a heart-wrenching column, but it is in the wrong newspaper. This rag is read by the 'love-the-fetus-hate-the-baby' crowd (they call themselves "pro-life" for brevity). These compassionate Republicans will have the same suggestion they always do for kids like Joshua and Shawn: Suck it up and get a job.

 

Posted 4 months ago  Reply  Link Abusive

MarionLibrarian

  ?   +1 0

That whole \"love the fetus, hate the baby\" crap is growing old. If you really loved the baby, then you\'d realize you\'re not a fit parent and place it for adoption. Not keep the baby, neglect or abuse the baby and then have the baby taken away from you. Take responsibility for your actions. Don\'t try to blame this on anyone other than the unfit parents. Abortion has its place, but not as a form of voluntary birth control. THAT is the cowardly (and frankly irresponsible) way to deal with unplanned pregnancy.

 

Posted 4 months ago  Reply  Link Abusive

LeftMAbehind2

  ?   0 0

Having a fosterchild the government pays someting like $500 or more per month. Childsupport that results from a divorce suddenly the standard is that the children should have the same standard of living as they did before and child support is roughly 30% of the non custodials gross income. Therefore an income of $100k means $30,000 or $2,500 per month.

Why the discrepancy, why when the government is paying are the children not as important or valued as children of divorce?

 

Posted 4 months ago  Reply  Link Abusive

Gingerina

  ?   0 0

You don't have to be perfect is so not true to be a foster/adoptive parent. You can't have had a CORI ever, nor have ever been involved with DSS. That is why so few kids are placed with family. It is so hard and time consuming to get waivers. Even with folks who have had minor stuff like a 20 yr old passing a bad check charge, have to get waivers.
It should be made easier for kin to be foster parents.

 

Posted 4 months ago  Reply  Link Abusive

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