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Need for Foster Homes for Siblings is Great
OKLAHOMA CAPITOL --- She’s only four when she takes her first ride in a police car. Her older brothers sit next to her, their clothes and a few toys stuffed into grocery bags on their laps.
They arrive at the shelter in the afternoon where they meet their first child welfare worker. Because the shelter is overflowing with children, the young girl and her brothers are taken to the worker’s office where they sit silently in metal chairs while the worker calls foster home after foster home, trying to find a place they can stay until their hearing.
Finally, at 10 p.m., after hours of sitting, eating fast food and taking naps on the floor, the worker wakes them up and tells them to get their things. She drives the children to the next county where a nice older lady is waiting under the porch light of a nice little house, nothing like the one she came from.
The worker explains to her that her brothers can’t stay with her and that she will see them very soon. And there she is, alone in a strange house. She digs her favorite doll out of the grocery bag and goes to sleep in a bed that’s not her own, not knowing what tomorrow will bring.
This is an example of a scenario that is played out over and over across the state. On any given day there are more than 6,800 children in foster care in Oklahoma. That’s a 16-percent increase from a year ago.
“Last year we saw a decline in the number of children coming into foster care and we were very optimistic,” said Margaret Linnemann, Oklahoma Department of Human Services Foster Care program manager. “But during the last year we’ve seen a dramatic increase. And these are not borderline cases, the abuse and neglect are getting more severe.”
The OKDHS emergency children’s shelters in both Oklahoma City and Tulsa have witnessed an increasing population to the point that they both continually operate well above capacity.
“We’re not sure what’s happening, but we do know two things for certain; we need more foster homes and people have to stop hurting children,” said Linnemann. “These numbers, these children we’re seeing now, are not only causing strain on an already overburdened system, but it doesn’t bode well for the future of our state.”
To become a foster parent you must be 21 years old and financially stable. You do not have to own your own home and you can be married or single. There can be a maximum of five foster children in the home and six children total. Medical, dental and mental health benefits will also be provided to the foster child. Childcare assistance is available for foster parents who work 20 hours or more a week.
“We have a particular need for foster homes for siblings. Most of the children that are placed in our custody have brothers and sisters, as well,” said Linnemann. “We need people who are ready to make a positive difference in the lives of children and in the stability of families.”
If you or someone you know would like to experience the rewards of becoming a foster parent, or if you would like to become a volunteer or donate items to an OKDHS children’s shelter, please call 1-800-376-9729, or click on www.OKDHS.org. To report suspected child abuse or neglect, call 1-800-522-3511, or contact your local OKDHS human services center.
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