Foster Children

Ray Winbush can spot them, even when they're as young as 7 or 8. The Morgan State professor was speaking to an elementary school class in Philadelphia, when one boy kept acting out and got even more petulant when Winbush told him to sit down. When the students went around the room telling Winbush what they wanted to be when they grew up - the usual doctors and lawyers and such - the boy said angrily, "Policeman, so I can arrest you." Later, he would ask their teacher, "Is that boy in foster care?"

Lisa and Eric Grevin's southern Anne Arundel County home bustles with activity, with six children playing, doing homework and getting ready for dinner. With three adopted children and three foster children, it's not exactly what the Grevins pictured when they decided to start a family — but now they say they couldn't imagine life any other way. "It changed our lives," said Eric Grevin, 41, of the couple's decision to serve as foster parents. "It made our lives richer and fuller, and I'm so glad we did it. " The Grevins recently were named Foster Parents of the Year for Anne Arundel County and will be honored at a reception with Maryland first lady Katie O'Malley at Government House in Annapolis in June.

IF ANYONE needs proof that government makes a poorparent, ask some of the kids who have been shuttled through the foster care system. One of the biggest problems these children face is the lack of a sense of urgency in resolving their cases.As things stand now, foster children who cannot return to their biological families can wait years for a permanent home. But such a regimen is tough on children; as time passes, they become less attractive to potential adoptive parents, particularly when they bring with them troubled histories.

Consumer advocates say they didn't get everything on their wish list during the latest meeting of the General Assembly, but the session produced several victories for Maryland consumers. For example, Marylanders would find it easier to buy auto coverage from a state insurance fund, foster children would gain protection from identity thieves and debtors would be less likely to be jailed under bills recently passed by lawmakers. Gov. Martin O'Malley is expected to sign these and other consumer-friendly bills next month.

Back from a short commercial break, WOLB radio show host Kewanee Smith shouts out a warm "Welcome back, Baltimore!" before turning to the telephone, its lights blinking, to take calls. First up is Johnny. "My son is 14 years old, and he keeps asking me to adopt him a little brother," says Johnny. Next up is Sharon, who wants to know why it is difficult to adopt, and later, Linda, who had adopted a little girl and wants to say how happy she is. Typical talk radio this is not. And Smith, a licensed social worker with more than 30 years experience in the foster care field, is no typical host.

Although conditions for Baltimore's foster children have improved under a 4-year-old federal consent decree, an increasing number of children who need to be adopted are having to wait a year or more, according to a report filed in U.S. District Court.Prepared by children's lawyers in a class-action suit and reviewed by the Department of Human Resources before it was filed yesterday, the report says 149 of the 337 children approved for adoption as of March 16 have been waiting for at least a year for the termination of their parents' rights, a key legal step in freeing them for adoption.

The implementation of the state's new foster child tracking system in Baltimore has been delayed because of continued reports of operating glitches and growing concern among child advocates, including the city's health commissioner, that the system will remain flawed unless more time and money are invested to fix it. The Baltimore Department of Social Services was slated to start using the Chessie computer system - short for Children's Electronic Social...

WASHINGTON -- A children's advocacy group called yesterday for major reforms in the nation's foster care system after issuing a report showing that 53,000 children who are eligible for adoption still languish in temporary homes.The group, the Boston-based Institute for Children, concluded that the main obstacle is the lack of strong incentives for states to help move foster children into permanent homes.Conna Craig, president of the institute, noted that the federal government reimburses states based on the length of time a child stays in foster care, no matter how long.

WASHINGTON -- President Clinton directed the federal government yesterday to take steps to double the number of children moved from foster care to adoption during the next six years.Clinton announced the initiative in his weekly radio address, this time joined on the air by his wife, Hillary, by adoptive families and by children hoping for a permanent home."I can think of no better way to fulfill the promise of this season than to bring a child into a family, and a family to a child," Clinton said.

IT'S GOOD to see a regional approach being taken to help solve what some consider a "city problem." About 600 boys and girls in Baltimore await adoption. Most have been waiting at least two or three years for a family.They may find one in Howard County, which has started an adoption program called Project Bridge.A $600,000 federal grant was announced last year for the three-year program, which will match city foster children with adoptive families in Howard County. But with the naming of a director and hiring of a recruiter, the program is just getting started.

Michael T. McCarthy Sr., a longtime Electrolux vacuum cleaner salesman who helped foster children find homes in his retirement, died on Jan. 23 of sudden cardiac arrest at the Baltimore-Washington Medical Center. The longtime Cockeysville resident was 69. Raised in Philadelphia, the sixth of seven siblings, Mr. McCarthy graduated from North Catholic High School there in 1961 and spent about nine years, starting in his late teens, as a brother with the Oblates of St. Francis DeSales in Wernersville, Pa. There, he was responsible for taking care of the grounds and working on the farm, according to his daughter, Jennifer Jones.

Glenn Zior's neighbors in Mount Airy have never been bothered by lights flashing four hours every night and traffic filling the narrow street as car after car stops to watch and maybe leave a donation, he said. In fact, many have asked him when his annual display will be ready. The lights will be on this weekend, he has promised. "Neighbors love the display, and a few have complained that it hasn't gone up yet," he said. Days before he tackled the annual remaking of his front yard into a holiday wonderland, Zior estimated he was short about 10,000 lights.

Letter writer Bob Marshall of Richmond, Va., cites a biased study funded by two conservative think tanks as the ultimate authority on gay adoption both in Maryland and nationwide ("Vote no to immorality," Oct. 27). What he does not mention, however, is that there are nearly 500,000 foster children in the U.S. without homes, and 100,000 who are actively looking for permanent families, only 20,000 of whom will eventually succeed. Mr. Marshall owes some answers to the remaining 80,000 children who would love the strong foundation of family that a gay or lesbian couple could provide.

When your life is already in chaos, more chaos is likely to follow. But theAnnie E. Casey Foundationsays it won't let that happen to the children affected by its decision to close Casey Family Services this year ("Casey foundation ends foster care program," July 16). Given the foundation's outstanding record of serving the most vulnerable children over the last 36 years, I trust it will do everything possible to maintain stability for the kids in its program Casey's decision to remain committed to increasing adoption through increased awareness, education and technical assistance is laudable.

George Stevenson grew up in a family that cared for numerous foster children, and after mentoring and coaching boys in youth baseball for years, he decided to adopt a child of his own. He became the father of an 8-year-old boy and named him Galen, after his brother. As the boy grew older, relatives say, it became apparent that he was troubled, and at one point he had to be sent away to a treatment facility. Still, they say, none of that could have foretold what happened in late April, when police say Galen stabbed his 43-year-old father repeatedly inside their North Baltimore apartment.

Denise Courbron raised her children, and also adopted two infants from Latin America. Now, she'll be taking care of another child. Last week, in a ceremony in Westminster, Courbron and three other Carroll County residents were sworn in as Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteers. Court Hearing Master Kathryn Brewer-Pool gave the oath, and congratulated Courbron - as well as Westminster residents Tyler McAuliffe and Katie DuLaney and Joseph Meisner, of Sykesville - on joining the program that provides special services to foster children.

Pointing to a blistering audit of the department responsible for the state's foster care system, the House of Delegates pushed through a bill yesterday that intends to rein in an agency that critics say fails the state's most vulnerable children. The bill would require the Department of Human Resources to better track and monitor foster children, measure the effectiveness of its foster care program, create a training academy for social workers and reduce the child-to-caseworker ratio to meet national standards, among other provisions.

Under a pavilion at Druid Hill Park, a little girl deftly twirled a hula hoop. The spry 10-year-old easily matched dance steps with a crush of practiced teenagers and sat patiently while a volunteer painted her face with feline features. But the minute she spotted her brother, she raced toward him. She held him in a fierce hug, saying the 11-year-old's name over and over. The pair had not seen each other since Easter. No one better understood that reaction than Shantel Randolph, a former foster child who organized the picnic to reunite siblings in foster care.

Abused and neglected children often wind up in foster care, and while they're given love and comfort by their foster families, they also often need someone to watch over facets of their lives. In a swearing-in ceremony at Towson's Historic Courthouse March 12, several local residents were among the seven who volunteered to take on that role as newly-appointed Court Appointed Special Advocates. Christy Valeri of Timonium knows the challenges of the job. As one of the newest CASAs, Valeri realizes the children she'll be working with haven't had the advantages of her four grown kids.

Maryland officials plan to announce this week whether the state will sever ties with the state's second-largest foster care provider, a decision that also could determine whether the company keeps its contract in the District of Columbia. Officials with the Maryland Department of Human Resources, the agency charged with protecting the state's 7,400 foster children, is expected to announce a decision on renewing the license for Contemporary Family Services. The Hyattsville company's contract in D.C. depends on it retaining its Maryland license, according to officials with the District of Columbia's Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services.