ARKANSAS: Darius entered foster care at the age of five because of an abusive mother and an absent father. Although Darius and his siblings were initially placed with relatives, Darius’s relatives felt they couldn’t keep Darius in their home. They weren’t prepared to manage his challenging behaviors. So Darius was returned alone to the foster care system, and he was absolutely devastated by the loss of his siblings.
Over the years, Darius moved through multiple facilities specializing in behavioral challenges. Despite the structure, he struggled to form connections, and his behaviors continued to escalate as he cycled through one institution after another. His feelings of isolation grew, and stability seemed out of reach due to the lack of family and normalcy that only a home environment can provide a child.
Things were looking bleak for Darius until his case was transferred to CASA of the Arkansas Delta. Christa, the Arkansas Delta CASA Program Coordinator, entered Darius’s mother’s name into the Connect Our Kids’ People Search tool and uncovered a list of relatives with the up-to-date contact information. Through this search, Christa immediately found Nora, a cousin once removed. When Christa reached out, Nora was surprised to hear about Darius’s whereabouts. She didn’t know he was in foster care. Upon hearing the news, Nora said she was open to helping him as she had experience caring for children with behavioral trauma, making her uniquely prepared to care for Darius’s needs.
Today, Darius is no longer in an institution. He recently moved to Texas with Nora and is now surrounded by family. So far, he’s enjoying a stable home and looking forward to spending the upcoming holidays in a family environment for the first time since entering foster care. Nora is thrilled to have Darius and is actively helping him improve his reading and writing skills, knowing that his early traumas affected his development. Darius’s behavior has already improved as he adjusts to his new home.
“It’s rare to find people who are trauma-informed [like Nora],” said Christa.
Thanks to Christa’s work and outreach and Connect Our Kids’ tools, Darius’s journey has finally led him to a family and the chance to grow and heal in a nurturing home.
“I wouldn’t have been able to have found [Nora] had it not been for Connect Our Kids. Your tools help me find a lot of relatives for many kids on our caseloads. [Darius] is one of them.”
Connect Our Kids is a non-profit dedicated to leveraging technology to find families, build connections, and create a community for children in the foster care system. Want to help more children like Darius? You can today by donating HERE.
*Name has been changed to protect privacy.
