NEBRASKA
Foster kids face huge struggle becoming adults
Each year thousands of foster kids age out of care and are left on their own. Some former foster kids said they are faced with very limited options once that care is gone.
At age 19 Curtis Larsen was on his own – no longer covered by foster care services. "It is very tough, not a whole lot of finance was out there for me. I mean I got a little bit from the state after getting out, but other than that, there was not really a whole lot," said Larsen.
Larsen aged out of the system 5 years ago and has struggled to keep a steady job and apartment ever since. Today he is back at home with his foster parents. "It was really, really tough trying to figure things out on your own. Most kids who have parents and are not in the foster care system or wards of the state they have continuous support from family and friends," said Larsen.
In Nebraska, foster care is provided for some kids up age 19. But like Larsen, his foster brother and sister also had a tough time transitioning into adulthood. They are all living here with former foster parent Deb Schnell. "I would say for the past 5 years I started noticing the issues. Maturity is very important to be stable on your own. It is hard enough when you are 19," said Schnell.
While the Department of Health and Human Services does provide programs for youth transitioning out of care at least one retiring Senator said there should be more. "There are some out there, but it is not enough. It is never enough. The need always exceeds the resources," said Senator Carroll Burling. Though health officials said states now have an option of extending foster care to age 21 Burling said extending the age will not help. "You are going to have the same problem. We need to mentor these people. We need more resources in this area. I have been advocating to take a look at that during my 8 years in legislature, but we have so much money to spend and do the best we can with what we have," said Burling.
Like Larsen, Rebekah Frawley also aged out of the system, but she went to college. Rebekah took advantage of the Former Reward Program. It provides funding for state wards or children under legal guardianship furthering their education. But Frawley said even that did not last as long as she had hoped. "I went to UNL for my first semester. I was real excited, the first semester I did really well and then second semester I kind of just fell through the cracks I guess," said Frawley.
Like most college students, Frawley had a tough time figuring out what she wanted to do and changed her major. In the meantime the clock was ticking, and at age 21 the funding ended. "After dropping my classes, I had nowhere to live I had to find a house and that transition was difficult. It is just hard because being in care you did not really have time to figure out who you were and what you liked," said Frawley.
Rebekah said she had no one to turn to and was afraid of disappointing her foster parents. She is now 24, working two jobs, and still not attending school. "I did not really have a support system, I was just kind of on my own. If I had somebody that was encouraging me and somebody that I could fall back on I definitely think I would be further along, and if funding had not stopped at 21 I can definitely say that would probably have a degree by now," said Frawley.
More funding and support is something both Frawley and Larsen said could have made a huge difference in their lives.
Denise Booker
17 November 2008
http://new.khastv.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=15259&storytopic=4
