Dylan Discovers Siblings He Didn’t Know He Had
MISSOURI: Seven-year-old Dylan spent two years in the foster care system. His mother was arrested on drug-related charges and child endangerment. She could not stay clean or complete the tasks needed to have him return to her.
Teen Boy Reunites with His Long-Lost Mother
OHIO: Ryan’s father was not in the picture for the first seven years of his life, but his mother was. They spent every day together and took lots of photos, and life was good until Ryan’s mother, who was young and single, went through a tough time and didn’t have the means or family to support him. With few options, she relied on a childless married couple who offered to adopt Ryan and convinced her they could give her a son a better life. They had a lovely house and loved Ryan, so it seemed like a good idea.
Olive Now Has an Aunt and Uncle in Her Life
OHIO: Olive* is a teenager who has been in foster care for a very long time. When a Wendy’s Wonderful Kids® (WWK) recruiter received her case, the recruiter saw that the particular aunt and uncle could be valuable connections for Olive, but no one could find their correct contact information. It had been a frustrating experience for all those who had previously tried to track down this couple, especially knowing that they could potentially be in Olive’s life permanently.
Technology Makes A Surprising Connection
OHIO: Jenny* has been in foster care for years. She has spent birthdays and holidays not knowing her biological family is or where they might be located.
Teen Reunites One Week Before Aging-Out of Foster Care
NEVADA: Dakota experienced several disrupted relationships before foster care. His father had abandoned him and his mother by the time he was one. His mother remarried, but his stepfather emotionally abused him. When they tired of raising him, he was sent to live with his maternal grandparents at age nine. His grandparents taught him to sell drugs which caused his removal to foster care at age 11. He spent the next six years living in multiple foster care homes and institutions. Over the years, Dakota became more withdrawn and isolated.
CASA Discovers 46 Connections for Child Who Spent 10 Years in Foster Care
TEXAS: While Mateo is only fourteen-years-old, he has experienced a lot of hardships in his young life. He has been in foster care for the past ten years and bounced around in many placements such as foster homes and residential treatment centers. Because of the long amount of time Mateo spent in foster care, to no fault of his own, many people gave up on him. He was an old case with no prospects of ever finding a forever family.
After 18 Different Homes, Teen Discovers Over 50 Relatives
KANSAS/HAWAII: Iolana is a fifteen-year-old girl who entered the foster care system a year and a half ago. Tragically, she has lived in 18 different placements in this short time. For children like Iolana, abrupt and repeated disruptions in their environment and relationships can be as traumatic as the situations from which they were removed.
Siblings Reunite with Their Older Brother
FLORIDA: Rhonda and Raheem are siblings who have spent the last four years growing up in the foster care system. While it’s common for siblings to be separated in foster care, Rhonda and Raheem were both living at the same residential facility when the possibility of being reunited with their older brother became a reality.
“Why Didn’t Anyone Find My Family Before?”
We often wonder if our People Search and Family Connections tools are making a difference for children in foster care and family finding professionals. We’re compelled to share one user’s email of how our software helped her find an aunt for a hard-to-place teenager.
Abandoned Newborn with COVID-19 Connected With Family
KANSAS: In November of 2020, Baby Kai* entered the foster care system while battling COVID-19 in the hospital. The only information given to child welfare professionals at Cornerstones of Care were the names and last known contact information for her biological parents. Kai’s mother is Native American so she would only be placed in a home that met Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) guidelines, a federal law that seeks to keep Native American children with tribal families.