Fostering Change

Written by Betsy O’Leary

Photos by Riyen Helg

Micheal “Mikey” Doucet has a gentle, measured voice when he talks about the trauma and neglect he experienced as a foster child who literally got “lo the system” designed to protect some of society’s most vulnerable youth. His interviews and social media postings depict his journey from a lost and broken eight-year-old to a thoughtful, introspective man determined to help fix a broken system.

The oldest of four children, Doucet grew up in a dysfunctional home with parents who were too young and illequipped to deal with the rigors of parenting four young children. In a series of deeply personal interviews, Doucet describes a far-too-frequent miasma of neglectful caretakers, abusive adults and the shame that accompanies foster kids adrift in a bureaucratic system.

A CHILDHOOD OF CHAOS

When recalling his past, Mikey admits that due to his dissociation from events that pocked his childhood, his memory is shaky on the particulars. He acknowledges that neither of his parents came from healthy backgrounds and that not all foster parents are bad or ill-intentioned.

Still, his personal experiences as a foster child left few happy memories. The first family initially tried to integrate both Mikey, eight, and his six-year-old brother into their home with their biological children. When that wasn’t a good fit, Doucet was re-homed with other foster parents before eventually being taken in by his grandfather.

A GUARDIANSHIP DISASTER

Doucet recalls loving his grandfather and appreciating his instilling a strong work ethic that allowed the young man to achieve much in his 35 years. But it took a recent reunion with his biological brother to reveal that there were some ugly secrets involving his grandfather.

Later in life he discovered that, in the court's view the placement with his grandfather should have been his final destination.

Unfortunately, as an adolescent Doucet found himself “farmed out” to other families, which eventually left the teen homeless and couch-surfing at friends’ homes. Throughout this time he thought he was still in the foster care system, just that the funding and resources had changed. Later, he would come to realize that he had fallen through the cracks of a broken system.

Brothers Reunited

Because of his work as a former foster kid trying to revamp the system, Doucet and his wife were invited to share the spotlight with Doucet’s biological brother and his family at a recent Savannah Bananas baseball game. The team partners with Bananas Foster, an agency dedicated to celebrating the foster care community and bettering the lives of America’s 440,000 foster children.

The baseball game was the first the two brothers had ever attended together and marked a huge step forward for the reunified siblings.

WAYS TO HELP FOSTER KIDS

Doucet wants to work with state legislators to create a legal framework of supervision for guardians of kids in “the system.” He hopes that will help prevent children from falling through the cracks like he did.

He adds that everyone can help by having conversations and learning the stories of foster children, making sure to include them and treating them like kids from two-parent households.

Mikey invites you to follow his inspirational journey on facebook.com/michael.doucet.9889 or on Instagram.