Meet The Slippys
Becoming a Foster & Adoptive Family was not something we just chose to do. For our family it was more like a calling, similar to a missionary being called to serve in a specific country. For us, however, it was a call to serve the needs of children in our own community. We had a desire and passion to help children who needed a family – to provide them with a safe place to belong, a place to be understood, and offer them unconditional acceptance - a place to heal and grow. We don’t believe we were called because we were the “perfect” family or that we were fully equipped with everything needed to take on such a role. It was more about being willing; willing to open our home and our hearts, willing to be teachable, and also willing to be apart of a greater team of people who look out for the best interests of children. We were willing to be a piece of the puzzle - a child’s life!
There are many people involved in a Foster Child’s life: caseworkers, judges, attorneys, mental health professionals (to name only a few), and each one is a piece of the puzzle. Together we collaborate and work together to support whatever needs a child coming into care might have. As with any multi-piece puzzle it takes effort and consistency to complete. Sometimes puzzles take a long time to put together because there are many intricate pieces that must be looked at and placed carefully into the bigger picture. Puzzles don’t always go together easily, either. Sometimes it means trusting and allowing someone else to come along side of you to support or even help you place the pieces in at just the right angle. We work with children, most often, who are under 6 years of age and some of the people we look to for support are Easter Seals Children’s Therapy Center, Early Intervention, WIC, Head Start and the Public School System. Ultimately it is our hope that through the process of putting the pieces together the final puzzle picture will look much like a safe place a child can call home, a family group functioning as a healthy unit, individual needs of each child in the home being met, and each child having an opportunity to grow physically, cognitively, socially and emotionally in a nurturing and loving atmosphere. This could be in our home while awaiting a permanent placement, in their biological home when they are returned, or even in an adoptive placement. The goal being a healthier child, a healthier family, and a healthier situation because people were willing to invest their time and committ themselves to - a child’s life!
Mike and I have been foster parents for over 5 years. We have 2 biological children, 1 adopted child and 4 foster children. We are a family of nine!! Mike is a school bus driver for Salem Keizer Schools and Oregon Child Development Coalition, and I use my early childhood education background to provide support for the young children who are placed in our home. We receive amazing support from our church family, Grace Baptist, where we attend FPNO (Foster Parents' Night Out) and we also belong to MPFPA (Marion Polk Foster Parents Association), which is not only a huge support, but gives us a connection to other foster families like ourselves. We continue to learn and grow as a family and each time a new child is placed in our home we trust they are here by no mistake! Being a Foster & Adoptive family isn’t easy and many sacrifices are made along the way….but there is no greater reward than to see the life of a child positively impacted by the care you and others provide in their lives. Having the opportunity to be apart of changing lives, seeing the puzzle begin to come together, or even seeing it completed as its own masterpiece of success is one of life’s most amazing gifts!
Could you be being CALLED to serve in this way?
