Ryan’s life started on a rough note. He was three years old
when the Windsor-Essex Children's Aid Society and Windsor
Police removed him from his mother’s care and a dangerous
situation. Ultimately, the courts deemed Ryan unadoptable
and he was placed into long-term foster care.
Now, almost 18 years later, Ryan is entering his second
year of college. He looks back on his route to adulthood and
knows many of the changes in his life are due to the family
environment of his foster families.
“My life would be very different if I had stayed with my
mom. I think I would be another statistic. I am grateful for the
foster parents who helped to raise me and who taught me
skills that will help me to succeed.”
Foster parents provide children with a loving, nurturing
environment. While some children eventually have the
opportunity to return to their biological homes, others will
remain with a foster family until they are old enough to
support themselves.
However, being a foster parent requires individuals to do
more than just look after the child. Foster parents are asked to
attend meetings about the child, keep records of the child's
activities and manage information that is confidential. Most
importantly, they make the child a part of their family. They
will also be asked to promote contact between the child and
their biological families.
Some people may resist the idea of being a foster parent,
but one woman offers a challenge to this idea.
“People say ‘I could never do that’ [foster parenting], but I
say to them tell me all the reasons you think you can’t and I’ll
tell you all the reasons you can,” said Dawn Marie Rocheleau.
Rocheleau is one of the recruitment officers and trainers
for foster parents in WIndsor and Essex. She has worked at
CAS for the past 17 years and has seen firsthand some of the
good that can come from fostering. Rocheleau believes in the
idea that families come in all shapes and sizes and are made
up of many working parts.
“We really look at what each family brings forward and
what they can offer to a child in their home.”
Foster children range from newborns to 18 years of age,
and like any child they are a huge responsibility. In addition,
children coming from problematic situations may have
experienced abuse, neglect, lack of supervision, violence,
severe conflict or exposure to drugs and alcohol. Therefore
these children may require more attention.
Foster parents are committed to these children. Foster
families provide an environment in whic