I have a very important article in Portland Family magazine’s May issue. A Need to Belong is about a foster child camp that gives foster kids a chance to reunite with their siblings who may or may not also be in the foster care system. Many foster kids don’t have the normal childhood experiences like birthday parties with another blood relative. They don’t stand next to their sister or brother while brushing their teeth at night. Camp to Belong which runs entirely on volunteer hours and donations, is making a difference in these kids’ lives.
When I first took the assignment, I thought it was going to be a nice story about a nice camp for foster kids. No, I was thinking too small. Way too small! You will be impressed with the staff and these resilient children. Please check it out.
I heard about the reality of some foster homes from a cousin's daughter, who ended up in one after her mom died young and the dad left the 15-year-old in charge of two younger siblings. She told me horror stories about her life in foster homes, parents who took on kids just for the $, a foster "brother" who set the house on fire, etc. What a wonderful idea to create a camp and unite siblings who are in different foster homes! I look forward to reading your article.
What a very nice idea–and kudos to the people who thought this idea up…
Camp to Belong is making such a difference! There are 11 of these camps throughout the US and Australia.