Caresouth Fosters Hope
Illawarra Mercury
Monday September 15, 2008
SOUTH Coast charity CareSouth kicked off Foster Care Week yesterday by joining the Spring into Corrimal festivities.
Running from September 14-20, Foster Care Week is designed to highlight the role of foster carers in the community and the need for more of them.CareSouth's Wollongong out-of-home care manager Rob Wilson said foster care could often alter a child's future and foster families also benefited greatly from the experience."A stable, caring and nurturing home environment can make a life-changing difference for a child or young person who can no longer live with their own family. "There are significant personal rewards for carers to gain from providing love, care and support to children in the community," he said.Mr Wilson said great pains were taken to ensure the child would be comfortable in their new home and foster carers need not fit a particular stereotype."As each child is unique with different needs, efforts are always made to match the child or young person to the specific dynamics of a family or individual," he said. "In our experience, the best carers are those who have some years of maturity and have older children that have left home."Single carers are also in a good position to provide attention and stability to foster children."Located in Wollongong, Nowra and Ulladulla, CareSouth oversees more than 50 children in foster care.For further information on becoming a foster carer call 1300 554 260.
© 2008 Illawarra Mercury