[SullivanDBC]

Firstly, I have been browsing this website for weeks now since my husband and I have FINALLY decided we are going to take the plunge and hopefully become foster parents. I found more answers to my questions on this site more than any other so thank you to all who have posted insights and their "pearls of wisdom", your intimate knowledge and insights went a long way in helping us make the decision to become foster parents.

My husband and I live in a suburb of Pennsylvania (Bucks County) and we have a women from the state coming to our home tonight to meet us in person and look at our house and give us an application. I was actually taken a back when she said she wanted to come over because I thought initially they just send you out a packet to see if you would really be intetrested or not but she wants to come and talk to us about the whole process....is that typical? I know we are in for a looong ride of classes and licensing and all sorts of stuff but I am glad that we are finally getting the ball rolling!!

[Bus24]

Hi,
We are from Berks County and they came to our house to explain things and give us the application.
We just finished our classes and now we are on to our homestudy.
Good luck.

[SullivanDBC]

Thanks for your response!! Congrats on finishing your classes....did you find the classes informative and helpful? How long does the homestudy take? How long did it take for you to finish your classes? Sorry for all the questions...we are just so excited and nervous about fostering.

Any insight you might be able to share about the beginning of this whole process would be helpful!!

[leaabc123]

We are currently fostering a 6 month old boy who is a possible adoption placement (long story).

When we talked about doing this last year, they sent us to an informational meeting. After that, we went ahead and called.

Then someone came to our home and did an initial walk through and started asking us questions.
Then we had to wait for the weekend MAP classes to start since my partner travels during the week. So we had a few months.

During the MAP classes, they finished up our homestudy. We did our fingerprints and physicals and made sure our references were done.

We started the process early last year and were certified late december.

Got our first placement this past June. It was a long wait because we took the time and were very clear on the issues we could and could not deal with. We also could have taken a sibling group of 2 but felt more comfortable starting with a single child.

The surprise was that we were willing to accept an older child but they called us for an infant. She ended up with a relative but her worker had another baby and really liked us so we got our little guy.

So, to sum up our experiences so far. Expect the unexpected. Be really clear on what you think you can and can not handle. Do not be afraid to say no when they call you and ask you to take a group of 6 if you only want 2, or if the issues are too severe for you.
They will call you for more placements. I don't know how it works in your county but here they have people who place kids all day called homefinders. I would call them once every week or two until we got a placement. It helps to remind the people who are trying to place these kids that you are around. Sometimes what is in the computer doesn't reflect the kids you can take.

Hmmm hope this wasn't too much of a ramble

[Bus24]

Sorry it took me so long to respond. We found the classes informative. We only requested information in July. The foster care coordinator came out in July to talk to us about the program and then we had our classes in Sept. Our classes were 2 times a week for 2 weeks. One night a week for 3 hours and then Sat. for 8 1/2 hours. They came out this week and started our homestudy. They just asked a lot of questions, then they walked through the house. They told us of a couple of things in the house that need to be fixed for when they come back the next time. They are coming back in 2 weeks to finish our homestudy. Then they just have to type it up and have it approved and we are licensed. We have requested to foster children 0-3 because we want our daughter to remain the oldest child in the family. They told us that it would not be a problem.
I wish you the best of luck.

[newMafamily]

We are in MA and they sent us some really basic paperwork, the social worker came to the house and then sent an official application. I think they came because we did not go to an orientation or anything. The visit was not part of the homestudy. We haven't had that yet. I don't think it is too unusual to get a visit first.

[SullivanDBC]

newMafamily, I am originally from MA as well Hudson to be exact...what part of MA are you from?

[newMafamily]

Shrewsbury- just a year but I have lived in your current state and a few others as well so I am definitely not a native. We haven't done foster care elsewhere as we weren't in a position to do it in the past. THe SW here seems nice but the whole thing is taking forever. She visited and they still haven't scheduled classes. Wish you luck