Real Stories

Authored by Lived Experience Leader Gabe Foley Lived experience engagement can serve as the building block to life-changing opportunities and experiences for youth and young adults in the child welfare system. But finding out how to get involved can be intimidating and confusing, especially on state websites that haven’t been recently updated. That’s the challenge I faced when I was...

For the first month after Marisol* moved in with former FosterClub Lived Experience Leader Jenn Martinez-Pettet and her husband Michael, all Marisol watched were videos of quinceañeras, which are special milestones for teens of Latina or Hispanic descent to mark their transition into womanhood. Marisol’s 15th birthday was fast approaching, and she dreamed of her own elegant, festive celebration. There...

Veronica Krupnick, a member of the Hopi Tribe who also has Navajo and Jemez Pueblo heritage, was six years old when she entered New Mexico’s child welfare system, ultimately severing her connections to her family, community and culture. “It felt like my whole world was completely different,” said Krupnick, now 26 and a program coordinator for foster youth advocacy with...

Independent Living Programs (ILPs) across the country are responding to increased requests for assistance from young people from foster care, according to a recent poll by FosterClub. In normal times ILPs help young people from foster care navigate the challenges of transitioning from foster care to adulthood. DFCS and ILPs in Illinois have developed mechanisms that have enabled them to...

FosterClub has released a document titled "What Young People Who Aged Out of Foster Care Are Experiencing During the COVID-19 Crisis), containing quotes gathered through polls of young people across the country. The piece can be viewed at https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MOYWQRd9Vwg9wphUr5ZDHeUrTfpkl6ml27UF86uyEKc/edit . .

Before I met my two dads I found myself living the life of a chameleon and at times I still do, masking who I am, adapting and trying to fit in where I never thought I'd ever belong. When I was on the edge of ending it all together, my two dads saved my life. My fathers helped me discover...