A Home Of Their Own

Written By Cynthia McFarland | Photos by Ralph Demilio

Substance misuse. Violence at home. Sexual abuse. Incarceration. Neglect. Abandonment. The reasons vary, but when a biological parent cannot safely care for their child(ren), the state intervenes.

Getting a child out of danger is the first step. The next is getting that child to a safe place for as long as necessary.

Unfortunately, this story is becoming more and more common.

“Over the last 30 months, the child welfare system in Florida has experienced an unprecedented increase in the number of children entering foster care. Northwest Central Florida—particularly Marion, Hernando, Citrus, Sumter and Lake Counties—is one of the hardest hit areas in the state. Since November 2014, the number of children in foster care in these five counties has ballooned 70 percent, from less than 1,000 to nearly 1,700,” observes John Cooper, chief executive o cer of Kids Central, a central Florida agency that develops and manages a comprehensive, community-based system of care for abused, neglected and abandoned children and their families.

Hard Numbers

As of mid-September 2017, almost 250 children from Marion County and 100 children from Citrus County were placed in licensed care, while 322 Marion children and 162 Citrus children were placed in approved care (living relative or non-relative caregivers instead of foster care). In 2016:

» 158 children in Citrus County were abused or neglected due to substance misuse

» 145 children in Citrus County experienced abuse or neglect due to domestic violence

» 328 children in Marion County were abused or neglected related to substance misuse

» 304 children in Marion County experienced abuse or neglect related to domestic violence

Once a call has been made to the abuse hotline, the Department of Children and Families may remove the child from the home, placing them in foster care if a relative is not available to provide care. The primary goal is always to eventually return the child to his or her parents, providing this can be done safely and in the child’s best interests.

“Parents are given the opportunity to make life changes that will enable them to care for their children in a safe and loving environment. During the time it takes for them to make these adjustments, the children stay in foster care,” says Nicole Pulcini-Mason, director of community a airs for Kids Central. “Foster care is intended to be a temporary shelter for children until they can be reunited with their family.”

The length of time a child is in foster care depends on many factors, including the severity of abuse su ered, medical and therapeutic needs, how engaged the parents are in the process, judicial involvement, etc.

“When safely possible, our goal is to reunify families within 12 months,” says Pulcini-Mason, adding that in the last two years, almost 41 percent of children exit foster care and are in a permanent home within one year of removal.

Children who stay in foster care longer than this do so for a host of reasons. For example, the courts may feel parent(s) are making progress on their case plan and allow them additional time to complete case plan tasks required by the court, or the parent(s) may file an appeal regarding the termination of their parental rights. If the child is being placed with an out-of-state relative, the process can take over a year because of the necessary supervision of placement.

In a situation when parental rights are terminated and a child is up for adoption, the child will remain in foster care until an appropriate match is found. It often takes more time to find a match for a sibling group or a child with complex needs. And for the occasional child who does not want to be adopted, remaining in foster care is the only solution as long as that child is a minor. Once those young adults are ready to exit the foster care system, Kids Central provides help via their “Independent Living” program, assisting these youth as they make the transition from foster care to adulthood.

Fill ing The Gap

Locally, Kids Central trains and licenses foster families to care for children, providing stable, loving, temporary homes during their most vulnerable moments. The safety and well-being of the children is always the highest priority.

The greatest need is for foster homes open to caring for teens and sibling groups. Pulcini-Mason notes that these children are traditionally the most di cult to place. For example, Kids Central averaged 405 sets of siblings this year.

As of mid-September 2017, there were 92 foster homes (215 beds) in Marion County and just 34 homes (78 beds) in Citrus County. Just as the number of children coming into the system fluctuates, so do the number of foster homes. There are many reasons foster parents may decide they can no longer foster, including adopting, retirement, health issues and moving.

When a foster family steps into the gap, they can make a crucial di erence.

Stan and Dana Redrick felt God wanted their family to serve others but knew traveling out of the country to serve on a mission field wasn’t possible with their present life.

“Once we learned about the need for fostering in Ocala, we felt like that’s where God was leading us to serve,” say Dana, adding that their daughter was 6 and their son was 9 when they began fostering.

Since becoming licensed foster parents in 2012, they’ve opened their home—and hearts—to 13 children. The 5-year-old boy they are currently fostering has been with them for 2-1/2 years.

“We talked to our children to get their feedback before fostering,” says Dana. “This was a family journey for us, and our kids have made this process so incredible. They’re both so invested, and they do things with the kids we foster that we wouldn’t have thought of.”

The Redricks made the decision to foster one child at a time, and this has worked well. They had to put their biological children first and know what their family can handle.

“Every child has their own wealth of needs and comes with their own set of rewards and challenges,” says Dana. “Sometimes we have to work with the biological parents, and we like to do this if we feel it’s safe. The point of fostering is to reunify the children with their families if it’s a good situation. That doesn’t always happen, but no matter what situation they come from, kids want their families. They often don’t understand that the circumstances they lived in weren’t healthy.”

Sharing joy with a child and providing a safe, healthy environment are the big rewards of fostering, observes Dana, adding that the children they foster also give so much.

“They have opened our eyes to life outside our ‘bubble’ when we see the appreciation they feel for the smallest things, like just having food in the pantry and a bed to sleep in.”

When a foster child leaves, the Redricks feel that emptiness but also rejoice that the child has gone back to his or her family. To commemorate time spent with the fostered child, the Redricks go out to dinner as a family of four and celebrate that they were able to know and love that child.

“We’ve had a lot of tears in our house, and it’s hard to see them go, but we have to remember that means it’s worth it,” says Dana. “You have to get beyond thinking about how it a ects you and realize your temporary hurt helps save a child who was living a life of hurt. The kids are our heroes for all they have endured.”

Dana acknowledges that not everyone is able or meant to be a foster parent but points out that there are ways to be part of the foster process without taking a child into your home. For example, you might o er to babysit for friends who are fostering so they can have a “date night.”

For those who can open their home, Dana encourages them to take that step.

“The need is mind boggling; there are a lot of homeless kids in our county. The fact that our phone rings constantly with calls about kids who need placement shows how big the need is for foster families.”