About Our Children
Our children come into the system for a variety of reasons. Their own families are unable to provide for them due to neglect, abuse, abandonment, or drug-related reasons. For every story we hear, there are many more out there just as horrible. Sometimes circumstances arise within functioning families that make caring for their children impossible at that time. Families are torn apart and everyone is thrown into chaos.

No parent wants to have his or her child taken away. Most children want to remain with families, even dysfunctional ones. We must feel their pain and be willing to participate in the healing process. It may take months; it may take years; but a commitment must be made to help heal these children.

Your expectations of what foster children are like may or may not be realistic. Children react in very individual ways to the past event of their lives. Some children who have known only pain connected with physical touch may recoil when you attempt to hug or cuddle them.

It may take a long time to simply touch their hand or arm without the child feeling fear. This may go beyond your realm of understanding at first and you may feel the child does not like you. Serenity will work with you in understanding the steps of trust building you may go through with your foster child.

A majority of our babies are drug affected and will have different withdrawal symptoms, depending upon the drugs to which they were exposed. This will manifest itself in a variety of different behaviors. Your baby may appear almost symptom free or be on the other end of the scale exhibiting severe withdrawal symptoms.

The children placed in foster homes have one common denominator – they have all been placed in protective custody through no fault of their own, and they all need to be loved and accepted for the special people they are.