May is National Foster Care Month

As most of you probably know, May is National Foster Care Month. This month gives us a chance to shine a positive light on the essential service that foster and adoptive parents provide for the children living in their homes. The love, support and stability that these parents provide to the children whose lives they touch is so important and often goes unrecognized. While the state does provide some financial reimbursement for these parents, the sacrifices they make each day to care for children who have suffered such tremendous loss and disappointment in their lives warrants the appreciation and support of the entire community.

Our program director spoke at a community meeting a few weeks ago and she opened up her presentation by asking how many people in the room had been touched by foster care. She was surprised to find that nearly every hand went up. People began sharing their stories about people they knew who were foster parents, friends they grew up with who were living in foster care, and so on. All shared stories about how vital foster parents are to the communities we live in.

I hope you'll take a moment this month and think about the important role that foster parents play in the community and how much they give in order to make a lasting impact in a child's life. Think about what it really takes to provide a safe, loving family environment to a child at a time when they need it the most. Now, take some time to think about what makes you different from a foster parent? Are you really all that different? The need for new foster homes is greater than ever. Please consider opening your home to one of Arizona's 10,000 children living in out-of-home care. For more information or to find out how you can become a foster or adoptive parent, visit http://www.aafcaz.org/.