HONESDALE, Pa. — Every day across the country, children are removed from their families for various reasons. Employees with Wayne County Children and Youth Services say the pandemic has only increased those numbers.
"We've seen an increase in drug use, mental health issues, and so many of those issues are then leading to unsafe situations for children at home, which then leads to placement with Children and Youth," said Rozalyn Burke, Wayne County CYS executive director.
There are currently 55 cases of kids in foster care in Wayne County, and that number is increasing. The number of foster families to help the children also needs to increase.
"We do have increasingly litigious and complex cases, and so because of that, we're always looking for foster homes in our community to keep those kiddos in their home, school, in the supports that they know in the communities that they know, so that's why we love to see our Wayne County family step up," Burke said.
Officials are hoping for families with patience, flexibility, understanding, and a heart to want to help a child in need.
"There's going to be children in the home who will have lots of trauma, so anybody who has that trauma-informed training is would be excellent," said Megan Damenti, resource family supervisor with Wayne County CYS.
Becoming a foster family takes about three to four months for the child's safety to make sure it's a good fit.
"You don't have to be perfect to be a foster family. We just want to get to know you and to ensure that your home is safe because we're already taking a child out of an unsafe situation. We want to make sure that the environment that we placed them in a safe and a nurturing environment," Burke added.
If you are interested in becoming a foster parent or want to know how you can help if you can't foster, you can call Wayne County Children and Youth at 570-253-5102.