Maine has a Foster Care Problem
“As bad as it is, the foster care crisis may be a warning sign of a much bigger problem – one that affects many more children than the over 1,800 in state custody. Poverty, including uncertainty about food, housing and health care, is stressing out parents in ways that can have a lifelong impact on their children. The same forces that are causing foster parents to opt out also are making it harder to meet their responsibilities to their children. The foster crisis is a family crisis.
In a Maine Sunday Telegram story (Sept. 2), Leah Bruns of South Portland summed up the problem well. She said that she has been a foster parent for years and has adopted two children from foster care. She has long advocated for more resources, not just for foster parents but for families in crisis as well…”
