Tales of Strength & Love

Nawanna's Story

Nawanna Snipe fought a long battle to adopt her daughter Deanna, now 10 years old. With her grandmother’s words of wisdom and love echoing in her ears, she has made it her primary job to ease the pain of her daughter’s past and provide a loving home.

Nawanna discusses the joys and challenges of being a mom to a child who was in the foster care system.

Here’s their story.

“…my job more than anything is to sit with her, eat with her, spend time with her and help erase that nasty past. My grandmother always told me I was precious, and every day that’s what I try to make sure Deanna knows.”

“One thing I have come to know is that the bad things that are happening to children are pervasive, because the whole system is broken. It’s not an isolated thing. It’s not a coincidence.”

“The circumstances of my life are not dictating my future. I am.”

“I love the life I’ve made. And that’s what I would say to a little girl going through what I went through.”

“Working at the “most magical place in the world” inspires me to be the best version of myself. My ideas are heard, and I am valued and respected. Growing up, I didn’t always get that.”

“So, once again my mother sent a daughter away to save her life.”

“If there is one thing my life has taught me, it’s the importance of being resilient.”

“Show the world that even though you had a bad start in life, you can still have a life.”

Will You Join Us & Go Blue for Foster Care Awareness Month?

Snap a photo wearing blue and share why you support children’s rights tagging @ChildrensRights.

Have more time on your hands? Have the kids in your life create a tabletop #BlueAnything collage made of blue materials like wrapping paper, bottle caps, blocks, blueberries, magazine pictures – you get the idea.

Send us a photo with your name, state, and age and we’ll post all entries on our website.

All entries received by May 31st will automatically be entered in to win one of CR’s classic baseball hats – in blue of course.