by Debra Niesen
Six years ago this spring, the archdiocese launched a new parish-based foster care ministry with the mission of supporting children in need and the families who care for them.
We believed that to be truly pro-life, the church should help ensure every child has an environment where he or she can thrive.
That is still true today and fits well with Archbishop Shawn McKnight’s vision for parishes to be centers of charity and sanctuaries of mercy. As we reflected on during the “Beatitudes from the Heartland” study and Pope Leo’s “Dilexi te” this Lent, no one should feel abandoned. “And the church, if she wants to be Christ’s church, must be . . . a place where the poor have a privileged place” (“Dilexi te,” No. 21).
May is Foster Care Awareness Month, a good time to pray for the nearly 6,000 children in foster care in Kansas. Many are waiting to be adopted, and many more need foster families to care for them until they can safely return home.
All these children are precious gifts from God. Coming from all communities and backgrounds, they have been removed from their homes through no fault of their own for various reasons. All have experienced trauma. All deserve a loving and safe home.
The Kansas foster system, with only 2,000 licensed foster families to help, works hard but is overwhelmed. Reunification with biological family is always the goal, but sometimes it’s not possible.
Teens who “age out” of the system without the loving support of a family face sobering statistics: 20% become homeless; 25% enter the justice system within two years; 71% of females are pregnant by age 21; and many fall into the trafficking industry.
We thank the many heroic Catholic foster and adoptive families who have already opened their hearts and homes to care for vulnerable children. We know their journey is rewarding but also immensely challenging at times. Fifty percent of foster families quit within their first year, often due to lack of support.
The church is the solution. Because care of the orphan and works of mercy are part of the mission for all baptized Catholics; we have the grace needed to answer this call. What if every parish inspired two new foster families, five new respite families, and multiple parish “support teams” that wrapped around these families, assisting with basic needs? Not every family is called to foster, but everyone and every parish can do something to help.
If you’re interested in learning more, visit: www.archkck.org/foster or come to the “Foster Awareness Wine & Cheese Night” April 30 at 6:30 p.m. at Curé of Ars in Leawood. And thank you, Kathy White, for working hard to expand this ministry across the diocese and serving families with care and compassion!
