Foster Parents Don’t Need to Be Rich, Just Good Moms and Dads

The Orange County Social Service Agency is looking for a few good moms--and dads.

Well, more than a few. The county has about 600 foster homes now, but they would like to have thousands. And until they find them, more and more children will have to wait in institutions for a family to take them in.

“We are urgently trying to persuade more people to take on this occupation,” says Barbara Labitzke, the county’s foster home development coordinator and executive director of SAFE (Southern Area Fostercare Effort), an eight-county coalition formed to attack the problem.

As much as she’s trying to encourage new volunteers, Labitzke warns that becoming a foster parent is “a tremendous commitment, like getting married or having a baby. Most people think about it for at least a year before making a decision. It’s a drastic change in life style. Because of the severity of the problems most foster children have, it can sometimes be more of a choice than the decision to have another (biological) baby.”

To become a foster parent, a volunteer must be at least 18 years old. Upper age limits “depend on stamina and health,” Labitzke says.

There is no education requirement, although some experience with children is necessary, “either from teaching in Sunday school, working in a nursery or taking care of younger siblings,” she says.

“A lot of people think they need to be rich,” Labitzke says. “You don’t, although you do need to be financially independent and able to meet your own expenses.”

Your home must pass an inspection, but it does not need to be exceptional in order to meet the standards, she says.

Two-income families are welcome to volunteer, although there is no reimbursement for the foster child’s day care. Foster parents may also be single. “It’s more difficult for them,” Labitzke says. “But it’s not impossible.”

Prospective foster parents must fill out a licensing application. “There are questions about your own home life and values,” Labitzke says. “We have to be careful not to put children from the frying pan into the fire.”

You’ll be fingerprinted and go through a health check, including a tuberculosis test. About 16 hours of training--including first aid--is required.

Before you’re approved, a social worker will come to your home and talk to you “about your upbringing and what you believe as far as raising children. There can be no corporal punishment, so you have to be able to use creative ways to discipline a child.”

Everyone in the family must agree to open the doors to foster children, Labitzke says. “If one person isn’t sold, they’ll find a way to sabotage it, so that’s very important.”

And you must have a stable home life. “Don’t think this is going to save your marriage or make everything better,” Labitzke says. “It’s not.”

After you’ve gone through the whole licensing process, you may welcome your first foster child in 30 to 90 days. “But if you want the perfectly well-behaved blond 8-year-old girl with a dimple in her cheek, you may have to wait quite a while,” Labitzke says.

To find out more about becoming a foster parent, call the Foster Home Development office at (714) 532-7777. Or call toll-free (800) 426-2233 and ask for SAFE. Information is also available from the Orange County office of the Children’s Bureau of Los Angeles, a private agency, at (714) 385-9025.