Called to “Yes!”
by a Connected foster mother, Amy Dutton
After three years of being a foster support family, Keith and I began our foster training in the fall of 2019. We opened our home in January 2020 and quickly received a placement call. We always thought we would be a one child home, but this was a call for siblings. I called Keith, thinking he would surely say no. To my surprise, he said yes! He thought our home would be great for two little boys. We welcomed the 15-month-old later that evening, and then we picked his baby brother up from the hospital 2 weeks later. Little did we know that another family was beginning their second adoption process. Soon our lives would intersect and create a beautiful foster/adoption story.
In the summer of 2020, I received a message from the family that was trying to adopt. The agency used in their first adoption was closing the Arkansas office, and they did not want to go out of the state to adopt. They were feeling led to open their home to foster kids. I shared information about Connected Foster Care and encouraged them to become a foster support family to get started. This family began supporting us in the fall of 2020, and soon after decided to open full time and see where God led.
While Keith and I felt led to foster, we did not feel God was calling us to adopt. In March of 2021, we began to transition the boys to our support family since they were open to adoption. The pieces of this story fell together in such a perfect way, that only God could’ve orchestrated it. We could not have written a more perfect foster ending for these sweet boys. In September 2021, they officially became members of their forever family. It all started with obedience to the foster calling. Then a “yes” to having 2, which felt crazy a lot of days. A closed door for the family in their adoption process, followed by their “yes to foster kids. The outcome was a family knitted together through God’s plan and power.
When I think about what could have happened to the boys, I am brought to tears by God’s mercy and grace. Yes, fostering is challenging! Yes, we get attached! Oh, but look at what God can do through obedience! Our 14 months with the boys was a wonderful, chaotic mess, but it was also one of the biggest blessings our family has had the privilege of experiencing. We are so grateful for the support we receive through Connected. Our faith and love have grown as God has given us His sufficient grace and strength for the fostering journey.