During the first few months of 2008, all I could hear was my mother in pain and agony from the life-sucking disease we call cancer. That time was a blur, but I do recall smelling the crisp winter air as I headed to school after I made my mother a traditional Colombian dish of rice, […]

I arrived at a row of rundown white single-story buildings surrounded by an old chain fence with overgrown weeds. It was strangely quiet for a place where dozens of children were supposed to be housed. After entering the gate, I crossed an open courtyard with nothing but a lone picnic table and then went into […]

I entered Utah state custody in 2001 and aged out in 2010, three months after graduating high school. The nine years I spent in foster care shaped me into the person I am today. I lived in 14 different placements. Foster care was a mix of horrible experiences and times when I was normal and […]

We were taken away from my sister’s home not even a month after we moved in. We struggled to reunite for years after that. There’d be moments where we were all together and other times when one of us was missing.

Everyone faces challenges in their life. Some more than others, but everyone faces challenges. Somewhere along the line it was decided that I would be the guinea pig for just how many challenges one person can handle. When I was 4 years old, I was adopted from Romania and came to the U.S. I lived […]

I was just 6 weeks old when I was adopted from foster care for the first time. Life with my adoptive family seemed okay, until I got a little older. There is a fine line between discipline and abuse, and that line was constantly crossed in our home. For ten years, I was tortured day […]

Born to a manic depressive mother and a schizophrenic father, statistically I had no chance of “being normal.” Brisk morning turned into terrifying night. Daddy put his hands where they didn’t belong. Mommy kicked him out and sat by the door to make sure I was safe. Family lied and said that she held me […]

Thinking of adopting but worried it is too expensive? According to an article in U.S. News and World Report, private domestic or international adoptions may cost upwards of tens of thousands of dollars, but adopting through foster care can cost “next to nothing.” And with more than 400,000 youth in American foster care, there are […]

At a defining moment early in my adulthood, I made the decision to pursue a career in social work. Since then, I have focused on the experiences of children and the many barriers to their success. After completing my graduate degree in social work, I set out to honor my calling as a field organizer […]

Children’s Rights seeks participants for its 3rd annual Fostering the Future campaign.  Taking place in May (National Foster Care Awareness Month), the campaign highlights daily blogs that depict the experiences of people who have lived in state care. If interested, please email communications@childrensrights.org. Participants will submit a blog post of up to 750 words along with […]