I Was Appauled By The Conversation I Was Over Hearing Between A Mother & Daughter, While I Was Waiting In Line At The Grocery Store Today. A Woman (70ish) Asked, "Do You Know The Ages Of The Children Coming To Live With Us Yet?". "No Mom, I Already Told You Their Ages / Boys Or Girls Makes No Difference!" Replied The Daughter (late50s) & Finished With, "We Just Need Social Service To Place Them Soon If We're Going To Make This Months House Payment!" Realizing Others Were Listening To Their Conversation, Both Became Silent. As I Walked To My Car, I Saw The Women In Their Car, & Wrote Down The License Plate Number. I Just Feel Somethings Not Right About The Whole Incident.
Am I Over Reacting & Making Something Out Of Nothing? Was I Out Of Line To Listen In On Their Conversation? Not Thinking I"m Better Than, Nor Looking Down Upon These Women, I Wouldn't Want Them To Care For My Children After The Fact. Lastly, In The Best Interest Of Any Child, If These Women Are Legitimate, Should I Not Call & Mention It To Social Services Or Child Welfare?
2010-04-01T14:46:24Z
Update: Called Social Services This Morning, Referred To Child Welfare. The Woman I Spoke With, Gladly Took The Information & Said A Fraud Investigator Would Contact Me, He Called Me Within 30min. Infact He Just Left From Interviewing Me About The Incident, Saying He Was Headed To The Residence Immeadiatly. An Adoptee Myself I Know The Feelings Of Not Belonging / Being Incomplete, But Cannot Phathom Life In This Type Of Situation. Thank You All, For Your Every Word, And Maybe We All Could Add A Little More In Our Prayers Tonite........."Gods Speed"
?2010-03-31T22:15:03Z
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While I dont think it is common, it does happen. There are bottom feeders in every walk of life. For the most part, people do not become foster parents because they want to make money. Most foster parents barely make enough to cover the child's living expenses, and if those children have any special needs, they lose money. BUT- there are cases where people do this.
As a mother myself, I have learned that if your gut tells you something is not right, then it usually isn't. I would make the call. Even if the woman was joking, it is not something that should be said. How would those kids feel? Better to be safe than sorry.
I would advise You to call and if it was be over hearing such a conversation I would do two things. I would step up and say ---that is all confidential and and I in fact would call the agency and give them all the info You overheard. This stuff needs to go to the agency. NO, most foster parents are not like this. They are told in class[my state] that the board payment doesn't cover the REAL cost of raising kids in foster care.
Anyone who believes there is money to be MADE in foster care is OFF their rocker in more ways than one. Some have went into fostering thin king there IS money to be made only to find out they ended in the Red.
You can thank FDR. He was the one who brought into our collective thinking that the government knows best for you. Churches were told to stay out of social programs and they did except oversea. There are lots of Christians churches who support mission not only over seas but here too. Adoption kind of has problem when the birth mother comes back after years and takes the kid back. So parents who want to adopt go overseas. So we kind of cook our own goose in that matter too. FYI: Conservative Christians give more in time and money than liberals do to chairties. Maybe some liberals need to start walk the walk instead of talk the talk.
Fostering is about the children and money paid to the foster carers is for the children not the carers. Form what I understand it is similar to the way foster carers are paid in the UK that the money is for everything the child/children need such as clothes, shoes, food plus birthday/Christmas presents. Any extra money is for extra costs incurred such as having to use more electric and gas.
I was shocked when I went to an information evening for fostering how many people thought they could foster as a full time job. They had it explained that they wouldn't earn enough money to rely on payments to give up their jobs as most of the money is for the child.
Some Foster Parents look upon it as a job, they do get paid to care for children in their home.
These two appear to fall at the end of the scale as far as caring goes, but sadly, sometimes children have to be placed in homes of people like this, because it is safer than where they are living with their parents!
I don't want to sound awful, but because foster parents get paid, they - like you and I - depend upon the money to pay their bills, so don't be sanctimonious.
If you want to improve the system, take the training, the in-home study, learn and become a Foster Parent - the system needs more good people to do this important job.