Most people in Texas are aware that there are many children in the foster system that are available for adoption. It is sad to note that many of these children will remain in foster status until they are eighteen years old and released into society.
Many of these children will have been moved numerous times. The fortunate segment of foster children will spend all or mostly all of their time in one long term home that provides a loving and caring environment. Unfortunately, many of the children who are moved a lot will be in at least some homes that will neglect and / or abuse them.
In addition, most foster homes are unable or unwilling to keep a young person after they reach eighteen because the home will no longer receive subsidies from the state. This phenomenon will force a young man that our family knows out of the home that he has lived in for many years. He is an intelligent young man who is probably still too immature to fend for himself.
There is a new place to assist young people who have come of age in the state system called the Houston Alumni and Youth Center. It was established to provide services such as educational counseling, job information, and help finding affordable housing. Most foster graduates do not go on to college. This is very unfortunate, considering that Texas law enables young people who have gone through the foster system to receive four years of tuition at any state chartered university or college.
The most popular resource that the center provides is the reunification of siblings. It is very unusual for a sibling group to be able to stay together once they have been in the foster system for very long. It is next to impossible for siblings to keep track of each other once they are separated.
Former foster children can register at the center giving their name and basic information. The center can then match names and many siblings have been brought back together. Volunteers at the center are finding that the young people want to find their brothers and sisters more than they want education, employment, or housing.
The new facility is performing a valuable service to this overlooked segment of our society. It is showing these young people that someone indeed cares for them. Similar programs should be started in other cities and states.
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