Seaside woman advocates awareness, education of foster children

Friday, June 04, 2004

By HELEN WARRINER
The Daily Astorian
hwarriner@dailyastorian.com

SEASIDE — When Celeste Bodner agreed to take two foster boys into her home nine years ago, she thought it would only be for a few months.

Today, the “boys” are 19 and 21, and are preparing to transition to a life on their own. For Bodner, it has been a whirlwind experience. As she and her husband prepared to become foster paerents, they participated in the mandatory 40 hours of training, attended other specialized training workshops and joined a foster parent support group.

But Bodner quickly realized that there was no information available to prepare the children she was welcoming into her home.

“This 11 and 13-year-old didn’t receive any information,” she said at a Seaside Downtown Development Association meeting Thursday. “They came in blind. It seemed like a hole in the system.”

Today, there are approximately 588,000 children in foster care in America, with more than 8,900 in Oregon alone. In Clatsop County, there are approximately 189 children in foster care, with 42 homes available to provide care.

As she researched the situation, Bodner discovered that, across the board, foster kids are confused about their situation and feel alone, isolated and stigmatized. So in 1999, she started Foster Club, a non-profit advocacy organization to provide encouragement, motivation, information, education and benefits for foster youth. Bodner now serves as executive director of the Club, which is headquartered in Seaside.

Today, the club’s original simple Web site has evolved into three, with one for older foster children and one for adults. It is the only organization of its nature in the country and has gained national recognition from other foster organizations like the National Foster Parents Association and the Child Welfare League of America. The club also provides publications and sponsors events to help foster kids succeed. An upcoming teen conference will be held July 7-10 at Tongue Point Job Corps in Astoria.

“A lot of foster kids have a doom and gloom feeling,” Bodner said. “They think they’re doomed to the same fate as their biological parents.”

According to statistics, within 12 to 18 months of leaving the foster care system, half of young people who left the system at age 18 will be unemployed. A third will receive public assistance and an estimated 40 to 50 percent become homeless. Twenty-seven percent of the men will have been incarcerated at least once and 42 percent of the youth will have either given birth to or fathered a child, Bodner said.

“There just aren’t enough homes that will take teens in general, and in Clatsop County, there are no foster homes that accept teens,” she said. “Many teens grow up in group homes, so these are teens that can’t even launch from a caring foster family. It’s heartbreaking.”

For many people, becoming a foster parent is not a viable option. But there are other ways to make a difference. Most foster children who make a successful transition into adulthood almost always tie their success back to one community mentor.

“Case loads in foster care are horrible,” Bodner said. “They have to concentrate on emergency situations. Things like mentoring become an extra and we can’t afford to have it be an extra. Foster kids are highly aware that the people who care for them are paid. So when a mentor can step up and spend time with them, it makes a tremendous difference.”

Six ways to help a foster child

1. Become a foster parent. For more information, call the Department of Human Services at 325-9179.

2. Provide relief care. Give foster parents a break by opening your home for a day, weekend or a week at a time by calling 325-9179.

3. Tutor or mentor a child. Call 325-9179 to provide an on-going mentoring relationship.

4. Provide a college scholarship. Donate to the Former Foster Youth College Scholarship Fund by contacting the Oregon Student Assistance Commission at (www.osac.state.or.us) or call (800) 452-8807.

5. Provide a job for a youth transitioning from care. Contact Jenny Burt, Clatsop County Independent Living coordinator at (503) 812-0700.

6. Provide housing for a youth transitioning from care. For more information, contact Burt at (503) 812-0700.

Learn more about Foster Club

• On the Web: (www.fosterclub.com).

• For youth preparing to transition out of foster care: (www.fyi3.com).

• For adults who care for foster children: (www.fosterclub.com/grownups).

• Foster Club is located at 753 First Avenue in Seaside, 717-1552.

Original Story at The Daily Astorian