Sun Flower Pocket Tee

I had a lot of run ins with homelessness when aging out of foster care. I then realized that there weren’t a lot of resources for people after foster care. There was no stability. I got back into school to get my second bachelor’s degree in social work. Becoming an adult is very different and learning how to do it with no one to teach you is difficult. You have to learn by yourself with no guidance.

Now I’m in college. I have a stable community. Going to Unfaulted’s Empowered conferences helped me realize there are ways I can support myself. Now I have two jobs and am about to get my own apartment.

The thing I would want people to know about foster care is that the mental health effects of having everything like food, water, a home and relationships taken away from you overnight can be devastating. 42% of former foster youths in Texas are more likely to die before the age of 23 than children in the general population.