Foster Mom Opens Heart, Home to Teens While Families Heal

Maggie Baxter is very excited about getting her 17-year-old foster daughter Rylie ready for prom this weekend. “We’re getting her nails done today and her hair done tomorrow.” 

“I can’t believe I get to be a ‘prom mom’!” This is just part of the joy Ms. Baxter and her husband Austin experience as foster parents.

During National Foster Care Month this May, Franklin County Children Services is celebrating the caring adults who open their homes and hearts to the hundreds of children in Central Ohio who need safe, stable, and loving places to stay.

While being a foster parent can be very challenging at times, the Baxters relish having a full house to offer normalcy and stability to youth while helping families heal. In addition to Rylie, they currently foster two sisters, ages 10 and 17, while caring for their own daughters, ages 10 and 14. 

Having lots of people around the house is nothing new for the couple. “My husband comes from a big family. I’m one of four,” Ms. Baxter said. 

The Baxters’ daughters are also very accommodating and welcome additions to their family. “We got lucky and they’re close with our foster kids. I can see the two oldest being lifelong friends,” said Ms. Baxter.

The Baxters particularly enjoy having a house full of teens and pre-teens and have earned a reputation for being good with older youth. According to FCCS Ongoing caseworker Ebony Giddens, “The Baxters advocate for all the kids in their home and try their best to make sure they feel at home and like they have a family.”

Being foster parents is natural for the Baxters. “My life motto is ‘I’m here to serve’ and serving as a foster family is what we’re doing,” Ms. Baxter said. She works part-time remotely as a writer and editor, while her husband is a high school teacher. 

As foster parents, they recognize and respect that their role is to give families time to heal and hopefully reunify. “That’s the goal we have in our home, and we want to do everything we can to help families be safe and thrive,” Ms. Baxter said. 

The most challenging aspect of being a foster parent is preparing youth to leave foster care, said Ms. Baxter. “It’s hard for even the most privileged and well-adjusted kids to go out into the world. It’s so much harder for kids who have experienced trauma and separation from their families.” 

As their foster children transition from agency care, the Baxters try to make sure the teens don’t feel alone. “We’re still their extended family,” said Ms. Baxter.   

Champions for foster care, the Baxters encourage others to join their ranks as foster parents. “It’s tougher than you can imagine, and more rewarding than you can imagine,” said Ms. Baxter.

“You hear that kids are super challenging. And yes, there are kids with behavior challenges and unresolved trauma. But these kids are worthy and deserving of love and support. You get them services and care, and you see them blossom and grow into healthy people. It’s wonderful to watch.”

National Foster Care Month

May is National Foster Care Month, when our community comes together to spread awareness and show support for children and youth in foster care who urgently need caregivers as they wait to be reunited with their families.

Franklin County Children Services needs more foster families who are ready to open their homes to children who need safe, stable, and loving places to stay.

And all it takes is 100% Heart to Start. To learn how, call 614.275.2711 or visit fccs.us/foster-care.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First Forever Family Funfest Celebrates Power of Permanency

Image
Celebrating the nearly 300 children who found “forever homes” over the past year through adoption or finalization of a kinship placement, Franklin County Children Services hosted its first Forever Family Funfest. “When children can no longer safely remain in their parents’ custody, they deserve to have the permanent sense of belonging that comes with finding a family,” said Raquel Breckenridge, Family Service Director for Permanency. “And we want to celebrate those lasting connections.” Over the past year, more than 100 children and teenagers who were in the agency’s care found their forever homes through adoption. In addition, almost 200 children were permanently placed with family relatives - grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, or adult siblings - or close family friends such as teachers and coaches, church members, or neighbors. Dozens of those children and teens who found their forever homes through adoption or permanent kinship placement, along with their families and caregiv...
Read more

FCCS Volunteers Comfort, Care for Children during Crisis

Image
As a volunteer in Franklin County Children Services’ Crisis Center, Michalle DiGiovine fondly recalls dining on “pretend food” and playing “restaurant” with a promising culinary staff of five young children as they tried out recipes prepared on a plastic range.  “It felt good that they could come to me - a stranger - to pretend and laugh a little,” she said, remembering how she connected with the youngsters, all the under the age of 10, who had just endured an extremely traumatic experience at home. As January is National Mentoring Month, it’s a great time to recognize the Crisis Center volunteers who help protect children by allowing them to escape from tumultuous situations for a time and feel safe and cared for.  Mentors and volunteers play an important role at FCCS in surrounding children who come into the agency’s care with kindness and support, letting children know they are not alone. It’s part of the agency’s strategy to protect the “whole” child - mind, body, and hear...
Read more

Creating Forever Families, FCCS Caseworker Celebrates 500th Adoption

Image
Finding lifelong, lasting family connections for children is all in a day’s work for adoptions assessor Liska Hall, a 26-year veteran at Franklin County Children Services. And in March, this exceptional child welfare professional reached a remarkable milestone, facilitating her 500th adoption.  “I have loved being able to provide permanence for 500 kids,” she said.  “I love that I will be the last social worker that they will have and that they will go on and have typical lives without caseworkers involved. I love it when the family is so happy and excited about the adoption and that this child is now theirs, forever!”   Going into the child welfare field made perfect sense to Ms. Hall, who was the first person in her family to attend college. She notes that she’s always been the kind of person who has looked out for others.  “I was a ‘social worker’ in high school,” she recalled. “I was the mom of the group, making sure everyone got home safely. None of my frie...
Read more