Carolyn Duffy, Intern for the Foster Care Services Dept, gathering material before a field visit

Catholic Charities Foster Care: A Home of Hope

by Madalyn Messer-Brooks

Asha is an accomplished 11 year old. She is an honors student and captain of the cheerleading squad.

She also is a foster child.

Asha’s life story is featured in the November-December issue of Reaching Out, the Newsletter of Catholic Charities Foster Care Services, which helped find Asha a home and a second chance.

Catholic Charities Foster Care is a department of Catholic Charities USA in Chicago.

“Children are our clients,” said Heidi Jesswein-Darville, director of Catholic Charities Foster Care, which is responsible for assuring the safety and well-being of abused and neglected children.

“The ultimate goal is to reunite the children with their families,” Jesswein-Darville said.

Whether it is helping the parents or original guardians of the children get treatment, housing, or a job, it is all so that the children can eventually return home.

Until the foster children can return home, the program recruits, licenses, and trains foster parents who can provide children with a loving home where they can flourish and succeed.

“We give homes to kids coming from bad situations,” said Carolyn Duffy, an intern for the Foster Care Services Department. “We advocate for them.”

Although each day is a challenge, it is “the idea of giving them a family,” Duffy said.

For more information about becoming a foster parent, tutor, mentor, doing office work, donating or helping in the many other departments of Catholic Charities in the Chicago area, visit www.catholiccharities.net.