Christian Peterson: reporter.riverbendnews@gmail.com
May is a month often focused on children, especially as the school year wraps up and summer begins. However, the month is important for children for another reason, as May is National Foster Care Month. There are hundreds of thousands of children in the foster care system - some who have been abandoned by their families, some who need a place to stay while things are figured out, and some who are orphans looking for a home. Either way, they are children in need, and May is the month to bring attention to that.
Jerrod Pfeffer is a man who wears many hats. However, the one he finds the most joy in is as a father. His journey started six years ago when he was part of a group volunteering with the foster care system. While volunteering, he saw there was a foster care crisis in the North Central Florida area. There were hundreds of children in need of a place to stay, and yet, not even half of the homes needed were available. Pfeffer reached out to a recruiting specialist to see how he could help, and as they say, the rest was history. Now, six years later, Pfeffer has proudly adopted one girl and is currently fostering another. He also works closely with the foster care system to this day, specifically as the Regional Manager for CarePortal, a group that works with the foster and adoption systems, helping with the needs of children and families.
"I gained a daughter," Pfeffer said when asked about how being a foster parent has helped him. He also spoke about how he gained insight into how overloaded the foster system is. "It's a blessing to help someone." That doesn't mean that being a foster family doesn't come without challenges. Pfeffer spoke about what he struggled with the most, which was working with an overwhelmed system. He said he wished for more community support and hoped to dispel misconceptions about the system. He went into detail, describing how community is the most essential part of succeeding as a foster family.
Additionally, he addressed how much of a blessing the community around the foster care system is. Pfeffer spoke on the joy of meeting other people "who have a heart for orphans" and how awesome it was to be an advocate for kids, especially when you get to see them thrive. "A lot of these kids come with a lot of trauma, so it is rewarding to see them thrive," he said. When asked about how being in a foster family is different, Pfeffer said that it isn't really. "It's like any other family; foster kids are just kids." He explained that while they do come with trauma, they are just kids looking for a home, sometimes even for a short amount of time. This is why his top piece of advice for new foster families is to "get attached." He spoke about how most of these children need someone to love and care for them. "It's like planting a seed," he said. The results may not be instantly visible, but kindness and love can have an impact on the children, changing the trajectories of their lives forever.
According to Pfeffer, the actual value of fostering is being an advocate for those who have no voice. Fostering shows a child someone loves them and gives them a sense of belonging. While not everyone can foster a child, everyone can help in some way. He returned to his point that every foster home is in need of a support system. This may come in the form of someone who can help transport a kid to extracurricular activities or who can babysit for an hour here or there. On top of that, pillars of the community, such as churches, should wrap around the child, help uplift them, and show them love.
Pfeffer also cited some national statistics to show how important helping a child in foster care can be. Approximately 50 percent of the homeless population was once in the system, 60 percent of sex trafficking victims were in the system, and 75 percent of those incarcerated were in the system. The amount of help that a good foster family and community can do is immeasurable. Currently, across 13 counties in Florida, there are only 201 licensed foster care homes. There is already the need for 65 additional homes, but more would be even better. Someone with a spare room and a heart for good can save a child's life and change their future forever.
The local Partnership for Strong Families is the best resource to get started and figure out how you can help. Speak to the recruitment specialist and see if you could apply to be a foster family; if not, see if you can help with any of the wrap-around services. "It's work worth doing," Pfeffer said. More information can be found at www.pfsf.org or by contacting PSF at HopePartner@pfsf.org or (352) 244-1615. The public is also invited to visit the CarePortal website to see what help they can offer there. As Nelson Mandela once said, "Let us reach out to the children. Let us do whatever we can to support their fight to rise above their pain and suffering."