Foster Care Stories

Laurie Gaston is not only a foster parent but also works for Monroe County as a Homefinding caseworker. After going through a traumatic experience, Laurie decided that she wanted to give back. She has been a foster parent since 2019 caring for 17 children in just two years.

Laurie takes children ages zero to seven since she has a teenage daughter. When deciding to foster her daughter stated that she wanted to remain the oldest child and to give her space Laurie decided to leave an age gap between her daughter and the children coming into the home.

She believes being a foster mom is her calling and is thankful that her extended family has been supportive and as passionate as her about helping the children.

Josephina Perez has had over 20 children in her time as a foster parent. Although she is open to taking children of any age or gender, she focuses mainly on teenage girls. She feels that she can form a stronger bond with more open communication with teenagers and in the end help them more.

Josephina decided to become a foster parent when she saw the need for safe, loving homes for children who have been through neglect or abuse. It took her almost a year to get to a place where she felt she could fully support the children that would come into her home, but once she filled out the paperwork she never looked back.

Being the oldest child in her neighborhood and taking care of the smaller children by cooking dinners and watching them while their parents worked gave Josephina the passion to want to do more. While in college pursuing education, she saw the amount of child abuse and neglect going on in the world and decided to switch gears to helping children in traumatic situations.

Josephina loves being a foster mother and says that although none of the children are hers biologically, they are all still her children.

The Stantons started fostering at a young age but have been fostering for over a decade now. In that time, they have had over 65 children, five children that they have adopted, and have two other adoptions pending.

The Stantons focus is special needs children. They have the skills and ability to help children who may be more medically fragile that other homes may not be equipped for. When starting their foster care journey, it was never a real discussion or decision. They both loved children so much and wanted to fill the need that they knew it was something they were going to do.

Pauline and her partner became foster parents to provide a safe space for children and teens in the LGBTQ+ community. According to Pauline, “children need a place where they feel like they are loved, no matter what their background.”

Pauline has been a foster parent for seven years; in that time she has fostered 14 kids and adopted 3 of them. Many of those kids were given shelter and protection by Pauline from homophobic and harmful environments.

Wanda and Eddie Rivera have been licensed foster parents since 1981. The Riveras have 2 biological children and 4 adopted children. They absolutely love being foster parents.

The Riveras have found a great balance in their home. Their children vary in age, so the older kids help with the younger children. The Rivera’s favorite part of foster parenting is seeing the growth and development of the children in their care.

The couple is always willing to take in new foster children, even when their house is full. Wanda says that she would do anything to ensure a child has a home. They know how very important it is that every child has a safe and loving home.

Although their children know that they are adopted, that does not change the incredibly strong family bond that is felt inside the Rivera household. Wanda says, “Once they enter our home, they’re part of our family.”