Abandoned Toddler Sparks Interest In Foster Parenting
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Seeing the toddler's face on TV and online after she was abandoned and taken to a South Sacramento fire station sparked an outreach from the community with many asking how they could help the little girl.
When a child goes into protective custody they are often placed in foster care. Currently, there are 62,000 foster children statewide.
"We get calls for kids all the time, text messages or the middle of the night," said Brooke Villanueva.
Villanueva and her husband have fostered 37 children over the last 12 years.
"Sometimes for the night and sometimes long term-we never know," she said.
Jane Doe (credit: Sacramento County Sheriff's Office)
Her heart ached when she saw this abandoned toddler's sweet face flash across her screen.
"I wondered what the mom was going through at the time and if she needed help if there was another way that would have been better," Villanueva said.
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She wasn't the only one. Viewers posted to the CBS Sacramento Facebook page writing: "Bring her to me. I'll take care of her" and "I will take her and love her the way a child should be loved"
Although admirable, it's not that simple says Cherie Schroeder, Tthe Director of Foster and Kinship Care Education in Woodland.
"It's a process. We don't want to give kids to just anyone and certainly, we want you to be ready and stable and prepared and to have the support necessary to make it work," said Schroeder.
Foster parents must meet a 12-hour minimum education requirement and orientation and complete a lengthy personal evaluation where psychological readiness is assessed.
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Schroeder has been through it because she and her husband have fostered.
"We have children abused, traumatized, so we do want you trauma-informed. We want you to know what child abuse and neglect is. What are normal developmental outcomes and what a re-trigger is. How to keep children safe," Schroeder said.
Villanueva and her husband try and balance it all while raising their three biological kids.
"You want to give them the world. You want to do it overnight but it takes time," said Villanueva.
It's chaotic with multiple schedules and appointments but rewarding. And then there is reunification, the ultimate goal for foster children and their biological families.
That is what Villanueva prays for with this abandoned toddler.
"We all make mistakes, but I hope she can work through whatever it is and ultimately get her baby back," Villanueva said.
Once certified you can foster and adopt children from any county statewide.
For more information about the Resource Family Approval process please visit www.yoloforkids.com, call 530-666-8479, or email rfa@yolocounty.org.