May is National Foster Care Month — and I want to share my story as a foster parent with you today. #NFCM2020 #FosterCareMonth
I was raised by my grandmother. I always used to think about what would happen if my grandmother had decided I wasn’t her problem, or that she couldn’t raise another child at her age. #FosterCareMonth
But that’s who my grandmother was. She’d tell me, “Jenn, if you have it, you have to give it.”

That’s why I became a foster parent at the age of 24 and fostered several children before they aged out of the system. #FosterCareMonth
One night, one child came into my room in the middle of the night. I asked what she was doing.

She told me her mother would leave in the middle of the night and not come home for days. She was worried I would leave too.
My heart was broken.

I tucked her back into bed and told her that I was never going to leave her.
Fostering children changed my life and perspective, but most importantly I was proud to provide much-needed stability to kids when they need it most.

My foster children were able to graduate from high school, and eventually college. I’m so proud of the lives they’ve built.
I carry the fostering experience with me as both a mom and Delegate.

In 2018, the Virginia General Assembly passed a bill making it easier for foster parents to adopt their foster children. #FosterCareMonth
In 2019, we passed a bill requiring the following steps be taken when placing children in the foster system:

1) Determine if the child has relatives eligible to foster parent
2) Provide notice to the relatives
3) Explain to the relatives how/if the child can be placed with them
This year, the General Assembly passed a bill allowing those who’ve aged out of the foster system to remain in their high schools until the age of 22.

I& #39;m proud of those bills, and there& #39;s still more we can do. #FosterCareMonth
You can follow @JCarrollFoy.
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