Foster care


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E A ST COUNTY

Observer Lakewood Ranch’s weekly newspaper since 1998

YOU. YOUR NEIGHBORS. YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.

VOLUME 17, NO. 27

FREE

NOLAN’S NIGHT PAGE 1B •

THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2015

ALWAYS ENOUGH LOVE PAM EUBANKS SENIOR EDITOR

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homemade welcome mat leading into the McAndrew home reads, “Welcome to our loud, crazy, fun, happy home.” With six children under one roof, the noise begins at 6:30 a.m. It doesn’t stop until nearly 9 p.m. There’s plenty of stress, but expectations are clear. It’s highly organized and structured. And, there’s always plenty of fun. It was like that even before Tom and Holly McAndrew took in two foster children ages 4 and 7 in March, adding to the already full house that includes Thomas, 11, Owen, 9, Scarlette, 3, and Merritt, 2. “We’ve become one big happy family,” Holly McAndrew says. The McAndrews had talked about fostering children after their first two children were born but put the idea on hold after the birth of their third and fourth children. But in January, while Holly and Tom McAndrew were remodeling a room at Woodland Community Church, where Holly works as an administrative assistant, they learned about two children in Pam Eubanks

SEE FOSTER CARE PAGE 3A

TRIBUTE TO HEROES Will you be at the Memorial Day Parade on Main Street to honor America’s bravest?

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Tom and Holly McAndrew gather with their children Thomas, 11, Merritt, 2, two foster children, center, Owen, 9, and Scarlette, 3.

THE HALL WAY He has a list of goals for the Manatee County School District, but Don Hall will take a pass on the long-term role of superintendant.

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YOUR TOWN OF BUTTERFLIES AND BECOMING BIGGER

Julia Butler shows off her handmade butterfly accessories.

All God’s Children voluntary pre-K students spent weeks caring for caterpillars and watching their transformations within the classroom. But on May 4, students, with paper headbands fastened around their foreheads, released their monarchs into the school’s butterfly garden while parents and students watched nearby.

EAST COUNTY OBSERVER

YourObserver.com

FOSTER CARE FROM 1A

need of a home. The brother and sister, ages 4 and 7, were staying with a relative after being removed from their home. The relative could only keep the children temporarily. “My first response was I looked at Tom and said, ‘I think this is supposed to be us,’” Holly McAndrew said. “Who would do this with four kids?” McAndrew began reaching out to contacts to find a match for the children, whom the East County Observer is not naming, and after three weeks without success, the McAndrews began to seriously consider the option for themselves. All the reasons not to foster were there: We don’t have room. We don’t have money. We don’t have time. How are we going to keep up with our own children? What will happen to our family if we bring these children into our home? We’re not good enough parents. But as the McAndrews prayed and talked about the realities of foster parenting, they realized their reasons were just excuses. “Somehow, magically, there’s always enough money,” Holly McAndrew said. “There’s always enough space. And there’s always enough love.” “God provides,” she said. The McAndrews had heard the horror stories: poor bonding, resentment from foster children about being taken from their families, ungrateful children… The list went on and on. But the McAndrews reasoned the challenges are to be expected. There are no guarantees that children of good parents won’t battle addictions, poor habits or other issues. There were no guarantees, period. “Kids don’t know why they’re taken, and you can’t talk about the case outside (of when you are meeting) with a therapist,” Holly McAndrew said. Tom McAndrew added, “Being in that situation, no matter how bad it is, you remove (the kids)

FOSTER CARE OPTIONS n PLACEMENT WITH A RELATIVE Children from their homes are placed with a relative, such as an aunt or grandparent. Investigators complete background and home checks on the relative. This option generally is preferred for children removed from their homes. n NON-RELATIVE CARE Children removed from their homes are placed with a non-relative, generally through a connection of the child, such as coach, teacher or pastor. Non-relative care families still are background and home checked. They receive minimal funding from the state for childcare, but children still qualify for Medicaid. n LICENSED FOSTER CARE Families in licensed for foster care are ready to take children in at a moment’s notice. They have completed background checks, home studies, professional parenting classes and other levels of clearance. They receive stipends for the child’s care. Children qualify for Medicaid.

Pam Eubanks

Holly and Tom McAndrew have four children of their own but have taken in two foster children into nonrelative care, meaning the couple have passed background checks and other safeguard measures but are not licensed foster parents.

from what they know.” With two special needs children of their own —  one with Asperger’s syndrome, obsessive compulsive disorder and a general anxiety disorder and the other with OCD and general anxiety disorder — the McAndrews’ life had already been transformed into one giant parenting lesson. Holly learned to be a therapist at home, to advocate for her children within the school system and handle other issues many parents never face. In fact, the McAndrew home was already was set up to be a therapeutic environment for children dealing with issues. They didn’t have to acquire toys. All they needed were two beds. “You can’t go into fostering with a superhero complex,” Holly McAndrew said. “You can’t go in thinking you are going to save a child. You are going in it to meet a need.” The two children the McAndrews are fostering have adjusted well since moving in in March. The family enjoyed a “honeymoon period,” followed by plenty of behavioral issues, including separation anxiety or reverting back to old behaviors, but the children have melded into the McAndrew household fairly easily as they learn how the family communicates, its expectations and other family dynamics. There are still those “What did we get ourselves into?” moments, but overall, things are progressing. The McAndrews have been working to create a new normal, while advocating for their foster children and teaching them to advocate for themselves. “It’s been really awesome,” Holly McAndrew says as her foster child gives her a hug. “Over time, all wounds heal with consistency and love. Who doesn’t have a wound that doesn’t flare up sometimes?” “My hope is people see they don’t have to be a perfect parent,” Holly McAndrew says. “We all take for granted we have healthy relationships.” Contact Pam Eubanks at [email protected].

MAY IS NATIONAL FOSTER CARE MONTH

322 Total removals to foster care from October 2013 to September 2014 in Manatee County, the most recent yearly figures available from the Department of Children and Families ... ,,, That’s 3.7 children per 10,000 compared with the state rate of 2.9 per 10,000 ...

... Of the 322, there were 49 children re-entering the foster care system — 15.2% compared with a state rate of 21% ...

... 28 of 74 eligible children were discharged to adoption within 24 months — 38% compared with the state rate of 51%.

SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE are the top reasons Manatee County children are removed from their homes. Historically in Manatee County, 20 to 35 children are sheltered each month. However, in the last 18 months, there has been an increase to between 35 to 45.

THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2015

BR IEFS

Foster care: A full house

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FOSTERING MATTERS In foster care situation, reuniting children with their parents always is the goal. But until parents address the issues that led to their children’s removal, foster parents play a critical role in care. “A foster home can provide that stability and that safety where the child can heal,” said Lucia Branton, who handles media and external affairs for the Safe Children Coalition, which provides community-based child welfare services for children in Desoto, Manatee and Sarasota counties. “The services are wrapped around that child to deal and work through any issues that may have led to the (removal). Foster parents play a critical role in a foster child’s life. We believe in having a family setting.” SERVICE GAP In the tri-county area of Desoto, Sarasota and Manatee counties, there are 128 licensed foster homes. Of those, 60 are in Manatee County. Those homes have a total of 112 beds available. “It sounds like a lot, but at the rate they are removing children, the beds fill up quickly,” said Lucia Branton, of the Safe Children Coalition. “Right now, we have 179 kids in licensed foster homes and group homes in Manatee.”

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SCAT station on drawing board While Benderson Development works to assure Sarasota County commissioners future expansions of the University Town Center project won’t come in advance of roadway improvements, the company also seeks to advance plans to construct a Sarasota County Area Transit station at the southeast corner of Desoto and Cattlemen roads. Todd Mathes, director of development for Benderson, said plans are ready but must be approved by commissioners. He hopes to bring the design and appropriate approvals before the board when Benderson presents its request to add a total 700,000 square feet of office and retail space to the southwest corner of I-75 and University Parkway. Once approved, construction on the transit station could start within 60 days.

County plunges into water park negotiations

Manatee County is one step closer to adding a regional water park to its list of amenities.  On May 5, Manatee County Administrator Ed Hunzeker authorized staff to begin negotiations with Manatee Lost Lagoon Development, which proposes a 20-acre water park facility at Tom Bennett Park. Hunzeker’s action proceeds with a recommendation from an evaluation board to continue with discussions of the project, which still will have to go through the public hearing process.

Beruff appointed to healthcare commission Gov. Rick Scott has named Manatee County developer Carlos Beruff chairman of the newly created Commission on Healthcare and Hospital Funding. The commission will “investigate the role of taxpayer funding for hospitals, insurers and health care providers,” Scott’s office wrote in a news release. The Legislature failed to pass a budget during its regular session, largely due to the issue of health care funding. Beruff, whose company, Medallion Home, is responsible for building or finishing East County communities such as Cascades of Sarasota, Riva Trace and Country Meadows, will chair the nine-person committee.