In 2008, the State of Michigan had nearly 18,000 children in the foster care system. There is a dire need for families who are willing to help children heal from the trauma they have experienced. Whether the goal is reunification with the child’s biological parents, placement with extended family, or helping children find a new, permanent home, foster parents play an important role. When children cannot be returned home safely, and no suitable relative can be found, foster parents sometimes adopt these children through foster care adoption.

Eli’s Story
Eli was a year old and living with his eighteen year-old, single mother. Eli’s mother, Kim, was homeless, and did not have any kind of social support system. One day, she made the fateful decision to leave Eli with a man she barely knew so she could go to work. Authorities found Eli alone in a vehicle outside of a local tavern, and he was removed from his mother’s custody and placed in foster care. Eli has some physical disabilities, and he did not do well in his first foster home. Eli’s case transferred into the care of Family Service & Children’s Aid, and he went to one of our foster homes. The Greens, an experienced foster family, have cared for foster children in their home for five years. They have adopted two foster children, and one of them has physical disabilities so they had some experience caring for a child with Eli’s special needs. The Greens loved and nurtured Eli and he began to thrive in their home. The permanency plan was to reunify Eli with his mother, and the foster parents, along with FSCA child welfare staff, helped Eli’s mother find housing and other material resources. The Greens mentored Kim in how to care for her disabled son, and how to advocate with local agencies to provide him with the resources he needs to learn and grow. Eli reunited with his mother, and he has not returned to foster care. To this day, the Greens continue to be a social support to Kim and Eli and the mother and child are doing well.

Family Service & Children’s Aid trains and supports foster parents so they are equipped to provide a safe haven for a Michigan child in need. Please contact us at 517-787-7920 or fill out an inquiry form if you feel that your family could provide a loving, nurturing home for a Michigan child in need.

FSCA offers an Adoption/Foster Care Orientation every 2^nd Wednesday of the month from 9-11am and 5-7-pm at our Jackson office. If you are a two-parent family, both parents must attend. Please join us for more information.

Foster Care FACTS

You must be 21 years of age.
Have adequate income to meet family’s needs.
Be willing to work with biological parents and support efforts to return the child home.
Be willing to work with children who have significant behavioral and emotional needs.
Be willing to help teenagers transition into adulthood.
Can be single or married.Can own or rent your home.
Can work or stay at home.
Everyone in the household must be able to pass a criminal and child protective service background check.
Foster parents receive financial reimbursement to cover the expense of providing for the child’s basic needs.

Please complete an Inquiry Form to receive more information about becoming a Foster Parent.

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