Court orders foster children to return to birth family

Court orders foster children to return to birth family


BY LANA HAIGHT, SASKATCHEWAN NEWS NETWORK; CANWEST NEWS SERVICEFEBRUARY 27, 2010 6:02 AM

Three sisters from a family of 14 children have been ordered by a court to return to that family in April.
Photograph by: Gord Waldner, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Saskatchewan News Network; Canwest News Service
One year ago, Saskatchewan Children's Advocate issued a scathing report on foster home overcrowding in the Saskatoon area.

"Kids in crisis" is how Marvin Bernstein characterized the desperate situation with some families trying to care for up to 15 children and youth at the same time. The consequence: Shocking stories of abuse and neglect.

This past week, we've been telling the stories of a handful of children stuck in the system.

Today's story is the last in this series.

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The three little girls don't understand why they are being sent home; they think they already are home.

"Here's a recent photo of our family," said Brad, showing off a studio portrait of his wife and their three foster daughters shot this fall.

"They wanted a family picture. So we went and had family pictures taken."

Eight-year-old Meagan and seven-year-old Reagan, in matching flowered dresses, stand on either side of Brad and his wife Cheryl. Two-year-old Jill, also in a flowered dress, sits on Brad's lap. Everyone is smiling.

The three sisters began their journey in the foster care system years ago. Meagan and Reagan have been placed with four or five foster families already. About two and a half years ago, they were placed with Brad and Cheryl. Jill joined them shortly after she was born after having been placed in a different foster home at birth.

The girls are from a family of 14 children with all but the oldest four siblings in foster care. The 10 kids in care have been split up among three foster families.

"The courts need to hear from the kids. They need to know what the kids want," said Brad, the girls' foster dad.

"Coming from us it can sound like it's a bit of an agenda, that we just want your kids. But that's not why we got into (fostering). It's just turned out that way. We believe that we can do a better job of helping them become the individuals that they can become."

Several weeks ago, a family court judge, following a recommendation of aboriginal elders, ordered that all 10 children be returned to their birth parents.

Brad, Cheryl and the three girls were caught completely off guard. They were under the impression the girls were to be placed permanently with Brad and Cheryl.

"These kids have been sexually, physically, emotionally abused and neglected," said Brad.

"When we drive past their (parent's) house, the windows are all smashed in, the door is frozen open a little bit. It's a nightmare to think these kids are going home in April."

Brad hauls out three colourful photo albums. Smiles abound. There are photos of the girls at the West Edmonton Mall, at the Calgary zoo, in Whitehorse. They are water sliding, crawling on monkey bars, baking at "grandma's," and listening to "grandpa" read The Night Before Christmas. And then there are photos of the girls wearing fancy new dresses bought just for them for a "family" wedding.

"They just thought that was the cat's meow -- getting brand new dresses for the wedding," said Brad.

"These girls are as much part of our family as our sisters and brothers, nieces and nephews."

Brad and Cheryl spend time helping the older two girls with school work and have seen them go from not being able to spell their names to being able to read beyond their grade level. They take swimming lessons and are in competitive gymnastics.

They are committed to helping the girls maintain a connection with their biological family -- arranging get-togethers with the other foster families who are caring for their siblings and taking the girls to see their birth parents for scheduled visits at a Social Services office in downtown Saskatoon. Brad and Cheryl don't want to sever the girls' ties with their First Nations culture either, but they do want to break the cycle of poverty, alcoholism, abuse and child neglect.

"We need to get them on the right track, let them graduate from high school. Reagan wants to be a hairdresser. Meagan wants to be a doctor. Give them the chance to do that and develop lives for themselves," said Brad.

"And they need someone to give them a hug when they're scared. They need to know they are loved unconditionally and they need to learn to love unconditionally."

Family recommendation: Children in the foster care system must have a "voice" -- access to a lawyer who will represent their interests throughout the process, including court hearings.

The Saskatoon StarPhoenix contacted the Ministry of Social Services requesting access to foster families to tell their stories, with the guarantee of anonymity, but was denied its request. The newspaper also contacted the First Nations Child and Family Services Agencies throughout the province and the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations for information and was not provided any. In the end, the StarPhoenix used its own network of contacts to find families willing to talk about their experiences.

The names of the families and the children were changed for this series. In some cases, the law required it because the children could not be identified. In other cases, the families requested it because they don't want backlash from the system.

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