“What Can Your ‘Yes’ Do?”
Kenneth Aycock is passionate about a crisis in Georgia, one most people may not know exists.
“I get out of bed every day because there are kids in Georgia who need me to. They need me to meet with churches. They need me to share about the foster care crisis in Northwest Georgia,” Kenneth said.
Kenneth serves as the Northwest Georgia Area Director for Families 4 Families, and an important part of his job is raising awareness about the state of foster care in Georgia.
“Most people don’t know that there’s a foster care crisis,” he explained. “They’re not really aware that it’s right in their community.”
Since 2020, Georgia has seen a decline in foster families. Some have stepped away from fostering after an adoption or because their season of life doesn’t support the time and effort needed to welcome little ones into their homes. Others stop fostering because of burnout.
As foster homes decline, children are still entering care across Georgia.
“There are about 11,000 kids in foster care in Georgia,” Kenneth said. “Thankfully, our agency has seen an increase in the number of foster families in the last few years. We’re seeing a lot of people say ‘yes’ to foster care. But there continues to be a great need.
“We get around 50 calls a week about children who need a foster family, and we’re usually able to place five.”
At the center of the foster care crisis are children who did not choose foster care but who deserve unconditional love and a safe home.
“The stories of the kids and the challenges and trauma they’re facing in their young lives — whether that be neglect, abuse, lack of medical care or housing or food insecurity — break my heart every day,” Kenneth shared.
No matter the circumstances leading to removal, every child in foster care faces a dramatic life change.
“Regardless of why they enter care, mama is still mama, and dad’s still dad. That’s all they’ve ever known. Depending on their age [and placement location], they may lose their school, their ball team or their band. They lose that sense of community,” he explained. “While they may be able to find some of these things in their new area, there really is no place like home.”
That’s why Kenneth appreciates how Families 4 Families is uniquely equipped to place children in their communities when possible, thanks to numerous offices across the state of Georgia.
“As a regional organization, we’re able to recruit across the majority of the state of Georgia for foster families, which allows us to place kids in the communities they live in,” he explained.
But to do so, Families 4 Families needs foster families in every community in Georgia and support for these foster families in local churches.
As he visits churches weekly across his area of Georgia, Kenneth emphasizes that everyone can be a piece of the puzzle to fight the foster care crisis.
“Oftentimes when people hear about foster care, it’s not that they aren’t sympathetic, but they automatically think, ‘I’m sorry there are children in my community that need help, but I’m not able to be a foster parent.’”
Kenneth understands these concerns, but he knows fostering isn’t the only thing other church members can do.
“We build banner teams around each foster family. Somebody can be a prayer partner, be a handyman or be a babysitter. They can donate meals or gift cards for meals, volunteer at a date night, or provide birthday or Christmas gifts. There are so many things that you can do,” he said.
Conversations with church members also emphasize that foster families aren’t the only ones who need support.
One recent encounter touched Kenneth’s heart.
After speaking to a local congregation, a man came over to thank him for sharing. As they talked, Kenneth learned this man had recently become a Christian. His children were in foster care, and he was actively working to regain custody.
“He told me, ‘It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I’m going to get my kids back.’”
When children enter foster care, in most cases, the intention is reunification with the biological parents after they’ve made strides toward stability. For Kenneth and the Families 4 Families team, their work isn’t just about supporting foster families or the children in their care; it’s about helping biological families, when possible, find hope and healing.
Whether someone’s “yes” is welcoming a child, providing a meal or walking alongside biological parents as they seek reunification, everyone can step up to fight this crisis as the hands and feet of Jesus.
“I believe we will probably not ever solve foster care,” Kenneth said, “but I believe wholeheartedly that if everybody would do what they can say ‘yes’ to, we could transform foster care in Georgia.”
