Smith Family

We first began our foster care journey out of an abundant love for children and a longing to help our community. Being able to actually reach the children that come into our home, no matter what condition they enter in, has been the greatest reward of our foster care journey. Each year thus far, we have the joy of seeing each child in our care blossom. This month, we will celebrate the nineteenth year of our foster parent journey. We will be celebrating our foster family journey together as a family of twelve: husband, wife, and ten excellent children.

Over the course of our foster care journey, the most important lesson for us has been to keep an open mind. We have built a routine together by participating in church, school, and extracurricular and community activities. Day-by-day, we emphasize to our children the importance of connecting - with each other, and with their families. Fostering is not always easy, but it is always worth it to see our children overcome, excel, and dream. It has been a daily commitment to loving each child, to communicating, to being patient, and to providing them with stability and guidance.

Our first foster son had a life-long dream to become a U.S. Marine and we watched him turn that dream into a goal. As of last year, he is an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps. While his success story may be different from another child, because every child has different needs, different goals and different personalities, it is important to remember that they are capable of overcoming any obstacle if given the support to grow into the individual that they were meant to be.

- Smith Family