Keith’s childhood was filled with instability and uncertainty. Abandoned by his mother, Keith lived the first three years of his life in foster care before moving in with his biological father. However, due to neglect, Keith was placed back into the system at 14.
Sadly, he spent the next several years moving among different foster homes and aged out of foster care at 21. He appreciates the foster parents and caseworkers who helped him along the way, but he still carries scars from not having a permanent family.
“Because I was moving so much, and going from home to home, I really didn’t think adoption was an option,” said Keith. “You have some days when you’re just like, ‘Wow, I just wish I could call one person to just make this a little easier.’”
Keith has a message for anyone who knows a youth on the verge of aging out of foster care. “Though they’re not your child, they could be your child. Be that person. Please don’t sit around and wait for them to just figure it out.”
Every day, more than 50 young people, like Keith, age out of foster care in the United States without a permanent family. You can help by considering becoming a foster or adoptive parent. View our Step-by-Step Guide to Adoption to learn more.
