DCS seeks to take care of its own
Warren County’s neediest children are being shipped to other counties for foster care, and the Department of Children’s Services wants to change that.
That message comes from regional DCS Foster Parent Recruitment Unit supervisor John Meadows, who said based upon department data, 46 of the 80 Warren County children in state custody have been placed in foster homes outside the area. Those children have been removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect or in some cases, after being judged unruly.
There are 13 foster families in Warren County and 16 “kinship homes,” which provide care to a relative in state custody.
“We need as many as we can get,” Meadows said of the need for foster care homes. “When a child enters custody, if we cannot place them in a home in their own community, we have children from Warren County being placed in homes in Clay County, Overton County, Putnam County.
“What happens is, those children are removed from the school district they’re familiar with. They have to re-enroll in another school in a community they’re unfamiliar with. They have to start making friends all over again.”
The department recruits adoptive and foster families. Meadows said in most cases, the department is working to reunite the family. Some children end up with their relatives, but sometimes relatives cannot take care of children.
“We need families from the community who are willing to open their hearts and their homes to foster a child. A lot of times, it is temporary. There are situations where children remain in custody until parental rights are terminated, and those children will be seeking an adoptive home,” he said.
Meadows is issuing a challenge to Warren County to help out.
“If every church in Warren County could identify a family willing to become a foster parent, then I think the problem would be taken care of,” he added.
Those who want to become foster families must complete a 30-hour training program provided by the department for free and undergo a home study process.
Families receive a monthly reimbursement payment to help support the children they take into their homes. All the children have TennCare and a DCS caseworker to assist foster parents with coordinating services.
For more information, contact DCS’ Adoption/Foster Care Division at (931) 646-3000 or 1-877-361-8360.