From Orphanages to Family Set-Up, Foster Care Parents Recall Journey

Jacinta Mutura - The Standard

Three years since *Celina decided to apply be a foster parent of *Stella, she recounted the journey she took to integrate her into her family in 2021.

It was a challenging period of adjustment as the then six-year-old struggled to fit into a family set-up after spending several years in a children’s home.

The journey of the 37-year-old foster parent and the child – both whose real names have been withheld to protect their identities – started at Hosanna Children’s Home where the former works as a social worker.

We became friends and she would run to me in the morning when I reported to work,” Celina recalled.

After she underwent a training on foster care and the importance of a child growing up in a family environment, she decided to foster the girl.

I decided to take her out of the children’s home because she needed motherly love that she couldn’t get from her biological mother,” said Celina.