When you hear about children in foster care, what do you think of? Does your mind absolutely go to the worst case scenario? Do you think of rebellious teenagers, large sibling groups, and disobedient children?
While all children enter foster care due to abuse and/or neglect, there are many children who don’t fit into this box.
You might be surprised to learn that there are more children in foster care between the ages of birth and two years old than any other age category.
According to the Department of Social Services, in the last fiscal year, there were 1,345 infants in foster care –that’s almost 20% of the children that entered foster care.
Babies, babies, and more babies.
Earlier this year, a four-month-old child was living at an emergency shelter for over ninety days because there was not a foster home for the child.
According to Karyn Purvis, “Each time an infant is held, rocked, fed or spoken to, brain growth is stimulated. Each time a child watches colorful scenes or listens to sounds, her brain circuitry grows and develops. As a child watches her mother’s facial expressions and sees how she interacts with others, she learns to read the meaning behind other people’s faces and behavior. Without all this vital sensory input, a child’s brain becomes impaired. That’s why children who were neglected and mistreated early in life so often display delayed learning, social ineptness, attachment difficulties, aversion to touch or textured foods, poor behavior in noisy rooms and even problems handling changes to schedules or plans.”
This is why it is critical that we find more Christian foster homes.
Do you have room in your heart and a space in your home?
If so, please consider becoming a Christian resource foster parent at Miracle Hill. To start the process, complete the Inquiry Form at www.miraclehill.org/foster-care
You can also follow us on social media at www.facebook.com/MiracleHillFosterCare to learn more!
Stay inspired,
Lindsey
