by Tom Busselberg
Davis County Clipper
DAVIS COUNTY — Maybe you know friends who are foster parents, or neighbors whose children temporarily were cared for in the foster care system.
Now’s the chance to learn more about what being a foster parent entails.
Two “Ask a Foster Parent” evenings are set for this coming week: Tuesday, Oct. 5, at North Branch Library, 562 S. 1000 E., Clearfield, and Wednesday, Oct. 6, at the South Branch Library, 725 S. Main, Bountiful. Both events will be from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. and are free.
“This provides basic information about what it is to be a foster parent and an opportunity to ask questions directly of a foster parent,” says Brenda Durtschi, Northern Utah Region Director for the Utah Foster Care Foundation. There is a need for foster parents throughout the county. The most recent statistics show there are 153 children in care in Davis County. Foster parent/adoptive homes include 36 in Bountiful and 104 in the Clearfield area.
Davis County families are traditionally very supportive in stepping forward, she said. In addition to caring for in-county children, some foster parents care for children from other counties, as well.
The Northern Region goes from the Utah/Idaho state line to the Salt Lake County line.
“You can make a difference to children who are in state custody,” usually due to a crisis situation at home, she said. “Foster parents can care for these children until they can go back to their biological family or find permanency.”
Foster parents are particularly needed who are willing to care for children from various ethnic backgrounds, particularly Hispanic, teenagers and sibling groups.
“Although placements are based on the needs of the children in care and not their race or ethnic origin, we cannot ignore the fact children may very well fair better in a home where certain cultural aspects closely resemble the home of origin,” Durtschi said.
“Sometimes these young children may not speak English because they haven’t started attending school. You can just imagine how confusing and frightening it would be to be away from your biological family,” she said. “But when you add the fact you as a child may not understand a word someone is saying in the home in which you are placed – that could be very traumatic for the child.”
Often more than one child in a family is temporarily removed from their homes in crisis making it best if they can be cared for together, by one foster family, Durtschi emphasized.
“One of the biggest reasons people decline not to become foster parents is because they’re concerned that just as they’re getting attached to the kids, then they return home,” she said. “If a family can look at how they can affect the life of a child instead of thinking about themselves, then they probably have the ability to do it.
“It’s not about them. It’s about the highest possible service they can provide to a child.”
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