Foster Family Adopts Seven Children

Fostering for 9 years has grown the family to 12

Jody and Kevin didn’t have any children when they started fostering over nine years ago. Over the last nine years they have adopted seven children who range in age from 4 to 17, three of whom are biological siblings. Jody and Kevin continue to foster and currently have three children in foster care in their home, in addition to the seven children they have already adopted. With a total of 10 kids in their home, Jody and Kevin rely on structure and support from family and friends.

“We are fortunate to have someone who comes three days a week to help get all the kids off to school.  We also have some really good family friends who have been a huge support to us. We have a lot of friends that we can call upon in times of need. For example, I’ve had a few surgeries and we’ve had a lot of people help us out with meal trains in times when I’m out of commission.” said Jody. “My mom helps too. She lives in Arizona and at the drop of a pen, I’ll buy her a ticket and she can be on a plane to help.”

As a family they enjoy going on bike rides as well as camping in their RV in the summer. They enjoy traveling and used the RV to make a special tripto Disney World to celebrate two recent adoptions. The family is also very active in their community’s local Ambassadors Project events, participating in monthly events for foster families. Offering a myriad of experiences, the kids especially enjoyed a Ninja Warrior course activity at a recent event.

With so many children of differing age ranges in the home, Jody and Kevin maintain structure through a routine and by setting clear expectations. They make sure there is time in the schedule for all the kids in the home to get the attention they need to feel seen. For example, when they have game night they play games with the younger kids and then when they go to bed Jody and Kevin do a second round with the older kids. They also make sure the kids are part of activities where they can find mentors and have one-on-one time with other caring adults. 

“It’s important for our kids to feel like we’re making time to have them feel like their individual voices are being heard. We don’t want our kids to feel like they are getting lost in the mix, whether that’s making sure that they’re celebrated for their successes as individuals, or involving them in the process of managing their behavior when consequences do need to come into play,” said Jody. “We don’t always have to be the ones to give the kids everything they need. Sometimes it can be other people filling their bucket in multiple ways too.”

Over the last nine years, Jody and Kevin have cared for around 120 children and youth in foster care and have supported many of those children in reunifying with family members whenever possible. They wrap around the whole family and support the parents to help them reunify with their children. They also have welcomed the biological parents or legal guardians of the kids in their care into their home whenever it is safe and appropriate to do so. Jody says getting to know the parents and supporting them in reunification has been one of the most rewarding parts of being a foster parent.

“It’s what’s best for kids, if they can be with their biological family or kin that they know. You hope for other things for children before you become the option to adopt, and so supporting and helping in any way that we can for kids to be able to reunify with their parents is what we’re here to do,” said Jody. “’We’re so blessed to have such a great community to help us support these families whenever they have a need.”

Jody and Kevin frequently reach out to their community to find needed resources for the families of the children in their care. They reached out to friends and their Facebook community to donate furniture for a sibling set they were caring for who were reunifying. Jody and Kevin got so many items donated they rented a U-Haul and helped the biological mom to set up the house with beds, couches, wardrobes, kitchen supplies, and all the things they needed. They have also reached out to friends and family to supply holiday gifts for reunified guardians to be able to give to their children. They have also helped youth who are transitioning out of foster care move into their own apartments. They have even used their network to find housing for one youth in foster care’s mom so she could reunify with her son.

“If we can help break down those walls and those fears and anxieties and help them feel a little bit more comfortable and let them know we’re here to work with them, then they can work on the things they need to work on a lot easier,” said Jody. “It’s our job to help parents feel a little bit of peace about where their kids are at and know that the communication is open so that they can focus on what they need to focus on.”