News Report – Blair Underwood Visits Foster Care Program
February 26, 2010
Here is a great article about Blair Underwood and his ties to foster care! ABC 7 – East Bay News
Foster Care’s Silent Warrior Campaign – Letter to Oprah
February 25, 2010
Silent Warrior Campaign
I recently created a new campaign called “foster care’s silent warriors” to generate some attention to all things relating to foster care. Part of the campaign’s plan includes a personal letter to Oprah’s producers that asks for help with regard to public exposure for foster care. It is such a large issue in America that it deserves LARGER THAN LIFE ATTENTION which is where Oprah comes in. A publicist recently shared with me that the best chance to reach Oprah with an idea is to speak to her producers so that is what I did.
Email Oprah Producers and tell them you want to see shows that highlight Foster Care issues.
You can help me get Oprah’s attention by copying my emailed letter (included below) and sending under your name. All you have to do is click on the “Email Oprah Producers” link, fill in your information and then copy and paste my letter ( included below). You can also email her with your own words as well, every email will help get foster care children the attention they deserve. Please help pass along this message!
Email letter to Oprah Producers
Looking back on my own experience as a foster child, I can see all sides of the story as to how and why I ended up there, which in truth matter very little. This site is not a place for playing the blame game. What matters, is choosing to create a future that will be far greater than the past. In my opinion, I am not responsible for the failings of the adults in my life; although I suffered as a result of them I do not believe I should carry this weight on my shoulders. Back then it was all out of my hands and this point is the driving force behind my passion for creating this website. So many former alumni are walking around with a burden that doesn’t belong to them on their backs. Children have a unique way of finding a reason to blame themselves. Many children who end up in foster care feel like it is their fault and these children grow up with this mindset. Some feel they have a stamp of shame or embarrassment attached to them.
My intention is that this site will help millions of former alumni change the way they view themselves so they can recognize, celebrate and embrace the silent warrior that’s inside. We may not be able to alter the course of experiences from our childhood; changes to the past are simply not possible. However, we have the power to make a difference now. Today we are warriors!
I am writing to the Oprah show to ask her to do several shows with foster care as the topic. It is a huge issue in America and I am pleading for some super huge coverage and this I place in Oprah’s hands.
Great Information from Website of Child Welfare League of America: Quick Facts About Foster Care
February 17, 2010
The article below is copied from Child Welfare League of America’s (CWLA) website. It contains some important data and reports. For more information about this data or CWLA, visit www.cwla.org
Quick Facts About Foster Care
Children in Care
513,000 children were in the U.S. foster care system on September 30, 2005. Most children are placed temporarily in foster care due to parental abuse or neglect.
Age of Children in Foster Care
Average age: 10.0 years
| Age | Percentage |
| Younger than 1 year | 6% |
| Age 1-5 | 26% |
| Age 6-10 years | 20% |
| Age 11-15 years | 28% |
| Age 16-18 years | 18% |
| Over 18 | 2% |
Race/Ethnicity
As a percentage, there are more children of color in the foster care system than in the general U.S. population. However, child abuse and neglect occur at about the same rate in all racial/ethnic groups.
Read the report, Children of Color in the Child Welfare System, from CWLA’s National Data Analysis System.
| Ethnicity | Out-of-Home Care | General Population |
| Black, Non-Hispanic | 32% | 15% |
| White, Non-Hispanic | 41% | 61% |
| Hispanic | 18% | 17% |
| American Indian/Alaska Native, Non-Hispanic | 2% | 1% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander, Non-Hispanic | 1% | 3% |
| Unknown | 2% | N/A |
| Two or More Races, Non-Hispanic | 3% | 4% |
Gender
| Gender | Percentage |
| Male | 52% |
| Female | 48% |
Length of Stay
For the children in foster care on September 30, 2005, the average amount of time they had been in the system was 28.6 months. Half of those leaving care that year had been away from home for a year or longer. 54% of the young people leaving the system were reunified with their birth parents or primary caregivers.
Foster Homes
In 2004, there was a total of 153,000 licensed/certified/approved kinship and non-relative foster homes nationwide. In 2005, 24% of youth living foster care were residing with their relatives.
Adoptions
In 2005, 60% of adopted children were adopted by their foster parent(s). The “foster parent” category excludes anyone identified as a relative of the child. 25% of children adopted in FY 2005 were adopted by a relative. A “relative” includes a step-parent or other relative of the child.
Siblings and Extended Families
Over 2 million American children live with grandparents or other relatives because their parents cannot care for them. When relatives provide foster care (known as kinship care), siblings can often stay together. Kinship care also improves stability by keeping displaced children closer to their extended families, their neighborhoods, and their schools.
Youth in Transition
Each year, an estimated 20,000 young people “age out” of the U.S. foster care system. Many are only 18 years old and still need support and services. Several foster care alumni studies show that without a lifelong connection to a caring adult, these older youth are often left vulnerable to a host of adverse situations:
| Outcome | National | Regional/Local |
| Earned a high school diploma | 54% | 50%-63% |
| Obtained BA or higher | 2% | 2% |
| Became a parent | 84% | 42% |
| Were unemployed | 51% | 30% |
| Had no health insurance (unable to obtain health care because they lacked health insurance or sufficient money) | 30% | 29% |
| Had been homeless | 25% | 36% |
| Receiving public assistance | 30% | 26% |
News Report-Prayers Needed for Former Foster Child Rape Victim
December 16, 2009
The other day I received an email that astonished me. A foster care graduate that I feel a big sister type bond with explained the details of a horrific ordeal she had just faced. She was attacked and raped while walking home from school. Now while I was already very impressed by this amazing young woman’s determination to overcome the adversities of growing up in the foster care system, I am now in awe. Over the course of several days and email updates, one amazing theme is jumping off the pages. FORGIVENESS AND FAITH. During the brutal attack, she said she concentrated on speaking with god, turning everything over to Him. Afterward, she prayed for the rapist, asking God to have mercy on his soul.
My mind has remained focussed on the act of forgiveness and the great strength demonstrated by people who have this capacity to truly “forgive” someone who has caused them harm and/or pain. This woman is truly remarkable!
Obviously, I am going to keep her identity private but my hope is that many of you will offer words of encouragement for her to read here. Let’s use this platform to show her support and love so she knows she is not alone and to show that she has an entire community of great people thinking of her and praying for her. Please post well wishes, words of encouragement and prayers here for her to read.
News Report-Man, 93 Adopts 64-Year-Old Foster Son
December 9, 2009
Here is a great article, sure to bring a smile to your face! 93 year old Iowa man makes it official.
Thanks to Edna (an upcoming Face of a Foster Care Graduate) for sending to us.
