Foster Son's Fresh Start Future Fund

Hello,

For those of you who might not know me, I am a former foster child who aged out of the system when I was 18. Because of this I understand what it means to experience high school through the lens of trauma. I know what it is to feel one doorstep away from homelessness when you turn 18. I am very familiar with the emotional wounds that come from child abuse and neglect that can follow a person for a lifetime. However, despite these challenges I became one of 3% of foster children who completed college. I went on to work in a social work field, directly using my experience to target older youth who were considered "out of control" or "unreachable".

This is where I first met our current foster son. He was eleven years old. Despite persistent advocacy by the non-profit I worked for, the system could not or would not meet his needs. He was abused in a group home which was then shut down for abusing him. Year after year of failed placements assured that he would become more and more angry. This entire time he never received the quality of therapeutic services a child with autism should receive. He was never even diagnosed. He was repeatedly penalized for his unique psychology. It wasn't until four years later when I was no longer working in social work that I heard he was still in the system. He was in a truly awful facility. I visited him. From the beginning of his case it had been clear to me that he was most likely autistic. I had done my undergraduate thesis on autism. I could not believe that the team of professionals around him failed to have him diagnosed so he could receive specialized services and support when he needed it the most.

So my partner and I, his foster parents since fall 2021, are asking for money to help him finally get those services. In my lifetime of experience with American social work systems, first in California and now in Colorado, I am flabbergasted that the budget for abused and neglected children is not more robust--because if it were, it could slow down the prison pipeline, especially for teenage boys. Social workers, like teachers, and therapeutic service providers should get paid more. The average social worker leaves the field after 18 months. I have seen why. Our taxes should be taking care of America's children, especially those who have been abused and abandoned. You would be shocked at the places they put these children, even in wealthy communities like Boulder County.

Besides the $150 dollars a week for autism-targeted therapeutic services the county has denied us, we have started a 529 account for his future educational needs and are hoping to put money away for his future (he is obsessed with technology and has a 4.0 GPA after one semester of high school). He is extremely interested in computer science, coding schools, or other technical schools.

I am currently in grad school for a masters in divinity and being supported by my partner. While we have the heart to help him we do not have the funds to pay for therapeutic support necessary to unwind years of neglect and give him a boost for a safe and stable future. We appreciate all the help we can get. For those of you that know us you know that every dollar of your donation will go directly towards seriously altering one child's future.