Foster Care Changes Lives
“It is often said ‘There is no adoption without loss,’ Every life touched by foster care experiences tremendous loss - in ways large and small - that leave an indelible mark on the heart. Outside of any religious connection, it truly is a ‘calling.’ You are called upon to offer safety, love and support to everyone you meet on the journey. It offers an opportunity to deepen your compassion and demonstrate true empathy in a way that nothing else in my experience can teach a person. You are called to understand the human need for safety and connection, cycles of poverty, systems of oppression, social services programs and mental health networks. Most importantly, you are called upon to be constantly grateful - for each moment and every memory. I’m deeply grateful for the lessons learned and owe a debt of gratitude that cannot be repaid to my children’s biological parents for trusting me to guide these little souls through life.”
National Foster Care Month, May 2022
Excerpts from Proclamation 10379 of April 29, 2022
Every May, we renew our commitment to ensuring that all youth in foster care have the love, support, and resources they need to thrive. We also celebrate the families who provide safe and loving homes for our Nation’s foster children. We share our appreciation for the dedicated volunteers and professionals who help our Nation’s foster youth find permanent homes and connect with their biological families when appropriate – many of whom are working hard to safely reunite with their children.
Today, nearly a third of children in foster care are being raised by kin – many of whom are grandparents. This helps children retain family bonds and a sense of cultural identity, which are so important to a child’s resilience and well-being. As children and families of color are disproportionately overrepresented in foster care, it is essential that we invest in culturally supportive services to nurture all children and families who are impacted by the child welfare system.
This month, we also recognize the history of injustice in America’s foster care system – particularly against Black and Native Americans. Relative to their white peers, Black and Native American children stay in foster care longer and are less likely to be adopted or reunited with their birth parents. Furthermore, foster care systems do not provide children with disabilities or LGBTQI+ youth with the individualized support, resources, and safety measures they need and deserve. My Administration stands with transgender youth in foster care and with all families that love and care for their children.
National Foster Care Month is an opportunity for us to celebrate foster youth and the people who provide them with love and support. It is our duty to help vulnerable children, and child welfare professionals and the families they serve. Through education, volunteering, and partnerships, we can strengthen our communities and ensure that youth in foster care have the support they need for a future they deserve.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 2022 as National Foster Care Month. I call upon all Americans to observe this month by reaching out in their neighborhoods and communities to the children and youth in foster care and their families, to those at risk of entering foster care, and to kin families and other caregivers.
Source: WhiteHouse.gov