Congratulations to the Winners of the 2022 Vivienne Campbell Foster Parent of the Year Award!
In Massachusetts alone, there are around 10,000 youth in foster care. These youth need the support of safe, consistent adults who will protect and nurture them during a time of great uncertainty in their lives. Foster families answer this call by opening their homes and hearts to care for youth in foster care.
From left: Aldric, Sarah, Executive Director Bob Gittens, Family Services Program Director Sarah Medrano-Palmer, and Intensive Foster Care Program Director Laqunda Nystrom, together at our 2022 Annual Meeting
Each year, we recognize a foster parent for their exemplary dedication and devotion as a caregiver with the Vivienne Campbell Award. Winners of the Vivienne Campbell Award go above and beyond for every youth who stays with them while in foster care. They make youth in foster care feel welcomed, supported and good about themselves. Their foster homes are consistently stable, nurturing environments for the youth they care for. This year, the award goes to Sarah Thomas and Aldric Henry!
Sarah and Aldric live by the motto, “Let kids be kids”. When youth are in their home, they want to take some of the burdens youth come in with off their shoulders. They ask the youth in their care about their dreams and worries, and provide a calm and safe place for children to heal and grow. Sarah and Aldric are open with youth about the realities of their situation, but let them know that the adults in their life are going to work hard for them.
Sarah and Aldric are great advocates for the youth they care for, bringing youth’s voices to the forefront. They ensure that youth are invited to all the foster care reviews and school meetings about them. They make room for the youth in these conversations to share their perspective. If youth are not present for these important conversations, Sarah and Aldric share with providers what the youth in their care tell them about what they want for their futures and what they think about their current situation.
The couple is dedicated to supporting permanency for the youth they care for, helping them to stay connected with their biological family. They have helped the youth connect with siblings at Siblings Connections Summer Camp and other sibling events. They coordinate with parents and grandparents to ensure frequent and regular contact. Sarah and Aldric are committed to showing youth that the adults in their lives get along and are working together toward a shared goal. They put in the effort to build relationships and find common ground with a child's birth families, siblings, and other important people.
“Let kids be kids.”
Sarah and Aldric maintain relationships with former youth they have fostered, often inviting them over to their house. This shows current youth in their home that their spot in the family is there for as long as they want it to be.
Foster families are ordinary families who chose to do something extraordinary. Most of their days are messy, beautiful and heart-breaking, full of joy, laughter and tears. Good foster parents love not only the children they care for, but also the families those children come from. Bridges Homeward is honored to work alongside incredible foster families like Sarah and Aldric.