GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. — Guilford County Department of Social Services (DSS) is calling on the community, saying the need for new foster families is urgent. The need is always there but the demand to find kids a safe and healthy home is growing.
"The need is dire," Chris Hines said. "We need as many foster parents as we can get."
Chris Hines is the Foster Home Recruiter with Guilford County. He said the pandemic made it more difficult to recruit and connect with people to open their homes. But the agency tried to be creative.
"Typically the kind of recruitment we do is very folksy," Hines said. "It's very shake-your-hand and speak to you face-to-face, so we've been doing more virtual stuff."
Hines said currently in Guilford County there are currently 443 children under 18 in the system's care and less than one hundred licensed foster homes.
"It's really been difficult for us to recruit homes that are open to working with our teens," Hines said. "It's just more difficult to place them, people are more hesitant to bring them into their homes."
Hines said that is one of their most significant needs.
"Kids don't misbehave their way into foster care, they are in our care for no fault of their own," Hines said.
Hines said they also try to not split up siblings.
"We have a need for homes open to working with our sibling groups," Hines said. "It’s a shame kids ever have to come into care, but when they do they often come into sibling groups and we don’t want to split them up."
While the kids and teens wait for homes to open, they stay under the care of DSS.
"Being a foster parent is not easy, but it is rewarding when you know you're making a difference in the life of a child who has been traumatized," Hines said.
It was a rewarding experience for foster turned adoptive mom, Tracy Allred. She said because of their decision to open their home, their family is now complete and she encourages others to have an open mind to fostering.
"It's very rewarding, it's hard. I mean that's the reality too," Allred said. "These children have gone through trauma, the very action of getting taken from your parents is traumatic and, so it's not easy, but it's very rewarding and having our forever son."
If you are interested in fostering, Hines said there are several steps you need to take. He said to become a foster parent in Guilford County you have to be a Guilford County resident, be at least 23-years-old, financially stable, pass a background check, training, and several other things. Click here, for more information.