‘I think it needs to be brought up more’: State in need of foster parents for teenagers

MT. STERLING, Ky. (WTVQ) — Gateway Children’s Services in Mt. Sterling says Kentucky continues to face a shortage of foster parents willing to take in teens.

Gateway serves children from birth to age 21 in their Therapeutic Foster Care Program.

Their residential program houses children from 10 to 17. Here the children have access to an on-site school, therapy and medical care, recreation programs and wellness counseling.

Olivia Ledford, director of Therapeutic Foster Care, says it is expensive to raise a teenager but they have services to help foster parents.

“A lot of people are afraid of those expenses, but at Gateway we are offering financial incentives for parents,” says Ledford. “Whether they’re a stay-at-home parent because oftentimes teenagers require one on one attention. And we also offer financial incentives for people who are willing to take foster teenagers in general.”

At any given time, Gateway can have up to 20 foster parents — only a few take in teenagers.

That includes Josh and Danielle Green, who have been fostering for five years, including two girls they eventually adopted.

“I think not a lot of people think about trying to be a foster parent,” says Green. “I think that it needs to be brought up a lot more.”

Josh says there are countless benefits to being a foster parent, like learning how children think and teaching them they can be anything they want to be. He also says it’s amazing to change a child’s life whether it’s for a month or a lifetime.

Gateway has worked with countless foster parents over the years and hopes to add more families like the Greens to the list and encourage people interested in fostering to go through the training and home inspections to see if they could become a foster parent and help change a child’s life.