Thanksgiving & Thanks-for-Giving

Thanksgiving is the season of giving thanks, but it shouldn’t be limited to just a season. It should be a season and act that should be observed and practiced year-round, not just when Thanksgiving rolls around. As we close out this year, it has given us time to reflect on how far we’ve come and how thankful we are for all of the blessings, favor, and support we’ve received as an organization. It has also made us realize how much more we need to be thankful for in our own lives. So, this blog is our petition of thanksgiving and also our way to say thanks-for-giving to all of those who have given their time, resources, and who have supported us in this endeavor.

Starting Fostering Futures by far was a huge undertaking in light of many other things we all had going on. However, it has been even more rewarding. Throughout this journey, Fostering Futures has also raised our awareness of the mountains and hardships these kids have to face. We thought we knew going into it, but boy were we wrong. To say it hasn’t affected us would be an understatement, and the crazy part is that we’ve only scraped the surface.

Just a week or so ago, I was leaving the University Commons area as a DSS vehicle was pulling in. In the backseat was a young girl, and while I don’t know her story or situation, it doesn’t matter. Here was a girl spending her weekend away in what I can only imagine to be very uncertain circumstances. I’ve thought about that little girl every day since and pray for her, just like I do for all of the teens that we’ve gotten the opportunity to work with. Some of these teens have been in foster care since they were 13 and are currently participating in North Carolina’s extended program. As far as they see it, the other teens and the DSS workers they’ve gotten to know have become their family. We’ve heard horror stories of traumas that kids in our own communities have experienced. We’ve read endless statistics, many of which we shared with you all through our #FactFriday social media campaign. I say this as a reminder that we need to be thankful.

So for this Thanksgiving, we’re beyond grateful for a God who loves us unconditionally and forgives us graciously. We’re grateful for the family we’re bonded with by blood but also grateful for the families we’ve formed through friendships and communities like Fostering Futures. We’re grateful for the houses we have over our heads, and we are fervently praying for a space that Fostering Futures can call home. We’re grateful for our supporters and believers who linked arms with us as we launched Fostering Futures and have shared this journey with us literally from the ground up. We’re grateful for our community and the other organizations that have mentored, partnered with us, and continue to open doors for us. We’re grateful for everyone’s generosity. In these economic times of uncertainty, we are very cognizant of inflation, not only for individuals but also for local businesses, so we are especially grateful that in spite of the soaring prices of literally everything, they still found it in their hearts and in their budgets to support us. We’re grateful for our volunteers who have given up their time to help us with anything we ask of them. We’re grateful for a dedicated board, one that has given us their time, insight, and the ability to pivot at a moment’s notice. We’re grateful to all of those who were guest contributors on our blog posts, for being vulnerable and sharing and trusting your story with us. We’re grateful to the teens for allowing us the opportunity to serve you and for trusting us to do so. We’re honored and blessed to be just a piece of your puzzle and can’t wait to see what you create in this thing called life.

Grateful Servants,

Kaitlin Reckert

Stephanie Kinley