Florida Willie was just 11 years old when he was placed in foster care after experiencing abuse and neglect. “I remember that we were struggling, me and my mom,” reflected Willie. “We didn’t really have food, nothing like that. We were sleeping on the floor.” As his time in foster care b
Mississippi After Kameca’s friend opened her and Jamar’s eyes to the great need for foster-to-adopt families, the couple sought to find a way to create permanency for children in foster care. Wendy’s Wonderful Kids recruiter, Kenyata, was looking for a forever family for Niyah and Elias — siblings w
Oregon For five long years, siblings Jermesha, Floyd and Jermain were without a safe, permanent home. They were placed in foster care as babies because of abuse, malnourishment and neglect. Unfortunately, Jermesha was separated from her younger brothers. Floyd and Jermain would often go more than a
Florida A lot has changed since Dawson and Dalton were placed in foster care as young boys. Dalton, who has cerebral palsy and other medical diagnoses, often did not receive the care he needed. At 10 years old, he weighed just 44 pounds. Dawson worried constantly about his older brother. “I was alwa
Ohio Important. Loved. Happy. These are the feelings described by siblings Taye, Kemarquez and Kiondre after being adopted by empty-nesters Carla and Oliver in Ohio. But the brothers didn’t always feel that way. Placed in foster care after being abandoned in a hotel room, the children spent several
Ontario, Canada In 2018, Kathryn and John shared their journey to adopt siblings Serenity and Kai through the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption-Canada’s Wendy’s Wonderful Kids program, in partnership with Interwoven Connections. The couple had always wanted to grow their family and decided to purs
Anthony Onesto, Chief People Officer at Suzy, was adopted as an infant and shares our belief that every child deserves a permanent home and a loving family. Now on a journey to discover his past, Anthony is telling his story to help raise awareness about adoption and the unique experiences that adop
Utah Placed in foster care at age 8, Austin spent the next three years of his young life longing for the security and stability of a permanent home. He often felt undeserving, unworthy and not capable of accomplishing anything. Fortunately, Austin’s journey changed with help from his Wendy’s Wonderf
Michael, second from right, pictured with his family at an event for Farmers Insurance Michael adopted his two oldest children at ages six and four, followed by their sister several years later at just three months old. Thanks to Farmers Insurance’s benefits, he was able to take time off to bond wit
Florida Arleigh was placed in foster care in Florida after suffering years of abuse and neglect. “I felt like I was lost,” Arleigh shares. “I gave up so many times to the point where I wanted to disappear.” At age 16, Arleigh was referred to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption’s Wendy’s Wonderfu
