McKensie Family

We started our foster care journey in 2008. Our biological children were in high school and we really wanted a little one in the house with us, but our local department of social services needed foster families for teenagers. We really wanted a chance to give back to our community, and looking back, it was the best thing that we could have ever done. We were able to give the kids a new beginning, teach them that you can recover from your mistakes, and help them make decisions that could turn their lives around.

Being a foster parent is not a cookie-cutter experience. Although every child handles the same situations differently, most often these children have been put in situations that require survival tactics. We worked to build trust with our kids. We tried to be supportive and be a listening ear. We saw their attitudes and behaviors grow and change for the better despite others having given up on them in the past. When our kids had an opportunity to make a poor choice, they learned to make the right one. We watched them put forth effort. There was joy in watching our children achieve goals that social services set for them, as well as the ones that they set for themselves.

My husband of 23 years, Seaver, and I have four children: Tyquan (29), TeQuante (27), Adiva (24), and Marquis (16). My kids come over during the holidays and their kids call me grandma. They call to ask for recipes or for help with financial aid forms. Our success as a family comes from ensuring that support comes while they are at home with me and long after they start their own families. My foster family is my forever family.

- Theresa & Seaver McKensie