5 Reasons to Become a Foster Parent

When thinking about becoming a foster parent, a million reasons come to mind why not to. You’re worried you might not be able to handle a child leaving your home,  you’re worried you might not be able to handle a child staying in your home, or you’re just not sure about the whole thing. Instead of focusing on the fears of becoming a foster parent, we’d love to show you five reasons to become a foster parent.

• You care about children. This is the primary motivation behind becoming a foster parent. Knowing that there are over 13,000 children in foster care in Missouri alone, and that there are not nearly enough foster homes to care for that many children, is a very motivating factor. If you have the resources, support, and ability to care for kids in care, you can make a huge difference in the lives of children in need.  

• You care about your community. Foster care not only keeps kids in vulnerable situations safe, but can also help strengthen families and communities. The primary goal of foster care is reunification, and foster families can provide a safe place for kids to stay while biological families work on substance use issues, mental health, homelessness, poverty, and parenting skills. By allowing biological parents to heal and grow to become better parents for their child, you are helping to strengthen families and communities.

1. 1. You have extra room in your home – and heart. Foster families can be empty nesters, they can be young families with biological children, they can be married couples without children or single people who have never been parents. There are no upper limits to age to become foster parents, and foster parents don’t have to be married or wealthy to welcome a child into their home. Foster parents need an extra room for a child to sleep, love, discipline, and stability for a child, and room in their heart to love a child regardless of how long they will stay in their home.

• You believe in thinking globally but acting locally. Foster care is a radical act of service. By caring for a child in your home, you are acting as locally as possible. For children impacted by trauma, having a safe, loving, and caring family to stay with to heal can be incredibly impactful.

• You’ve always thought about fostering. Many people who become foster parents have been thinking about it for many years – sometimes since their own childhood.
  
  Though it may seem like a scary first step, we are here to answer any questions you might have about becoming a foster parent. Inquiring about what it’s like to be a foster parent, or what the training process is like, or any other questions you might have is what we are here for. Visit goodshepherdstl.org/foster to learn about becoming a foster parent or join us for one of our no-pressure, no commitment info sessions each month.