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Praise for CAS

February 14, 2012 permalink

To promote foster care Soo CAS has brought out a former foster girl who praises the agency. From the looks of things, she is getting paid by CAS.

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Children's Aid Society makes 'heart'-felt plea for more foster families

Amber Kennard
Amber Kennard (right), a former foster child, checks out the handiwork of Grade 5 student Sarah McEwen (left) on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2012 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. The CAS had local school children make 182 hearts, one for each child in care in the district.
MICHAEL PURVIS/SAULT STAR/QMI AGENCY

Amber Kennard has good reason to lend the foster care system her stamp of approval.

She credits the Children’s Aid Society with saving her life.

“I would probably be one of the statistics on teenage suicide,” said Kennard, 21.

If not for foster care, “I wouldn’t be standing here today. There’s a lot to be thankful for," she said.

Kennard was present Thursday as CAS Algoma held its Helping Hearts event to draw attention to the number of children in care and the need for more foster families.

Children from St. Pius X Catholic School and Northern Heights Public School decorated 182 hearts, one for each child in CAS Algoma care. The hearts hang outside on the walls of the CAS Algoma building on Northern Avenue and will stay up until after Valentine’s Day.

While there are 182 children in care, Algoma has just 102 foster families.

Tracy Rushon, CAS Algoma’s recruitment coordinator, said a number of factors come into play when matching children with foster families, including the child‘s age, the number of children a family can accommodate, as well as what behaviours a family feels it can manage and what behaviours the family may have skills in managing.

“Our goal is to always try to best match families and children, so the more families we have the better matches we can make,” said Rushon.

Kennard is in Sault College’s personal support worker program and plans to go on to study recreational therapy in hopes of someday working as an activities director at a retirement home.

She still lives with the family who fostered her for nine years, and she said it was her foster parents who encouraged her to pursue an education.

“Education was big,” said Kennard, who was in foster care with her older sister. “There were a lot of life lessons.”

Those interested in becoming foster parents should visit the CAS online at www.algomacas.org for more information, or contact Rushon or her colleague Christine Mair at the CAS.

Source: Sault Star

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