Smyrna times., 1954-11-25
Report To Parents
DIR. Martha Nj. Eliot
Chief, Children's Bureau

partment of Public Welfare in
Syracuse, New York, asked the
citizens of onondaga County to
ask themselves last March.
Year in and year out, an aver
age of 500 children in that county
need foster homes because their
own have been temporarily brok-
en- by death, divorce, illness, or
some misfortune beyond the con-
troll of their parents.
The Welfare Department was
faced with the fact that as older
foster parents dropped out of ac-
tice participation in the foster
parents program they were not
being replaced by new applicants
in sufficient numbers to take care
of all the children who needed a
new home. In addition, the De-
partment was eager to place in
homes those children who were in
institutions and who could and
should, for their own best we'll
being-have been living with a
family.
So it rolled up its sleeves ana
went to work. The Departments
goal was to create a reservoir"
of from 100 to $50 homes.
First, the staff wrote a booklet,
a "step-by-step look at foster
parenthood. In it, were facts
about the children needing homes;
details about how homes are chos-
en-; and 10 key questions, with
answers, that might be expected
to come to the minds of prospec-
tive foster parents.
Children of all races, all ma
tionalities, all ages and sizes, are
in need of homes in our county"
the booklet said. 'The need is
every day. They are boys and
girls from infancy to 18. They
are children of varying back
grounds some with special phys
ical or health problems, others
completely normal" Some need
homes for only a few months; for
others, the stay might stretch
into years.
There was no dramatic emo
tional appeal in the leafiet except,
perhaps, the reminder that a.
man is never so tall as when he
bends over to help child'-just
the facts. At the back of the
booklet was an application blank.
Next campaign of publicity
was planned with all the agencies
that spread the news. Two daily
newspapers ran feature stories
about the leafet and the faster
care program. Spot announce
ments and interviews were broad
cast by a radio and 2 TV Sta
tions. The % county week1ies
carried stories. Letters were sent
to all ministers and priests in the
community and to all presidents
of local clubs, requesting their aid
in communicating the message.
The response was so immediate
and enthusiastic that within two
weeks the Department stopped its
aggressive campaign which orig
inally was to run four weeks.
Within IA days, 600 requests had
come in. AS promised, each fam
lily volunteering to provide fos-
ter home is being visited by a So
cial worker to talk things over,
so that both the family and the
Department can be sure that be-
ing foster parents will be good
idea for the family and to find
out what kind of child they would
like to have. In the 6 months
following the campaign 126 fam
lilies have been approved for fos-
ter children.
Children of all ages, all relig-
ions, and all races, the campaign
revealed, were wanted by foster
families, with one exception. Not
enough homes for the number of
negro children who needed them
turned up. Especially gratifying,
however, were number of people
who were happy to give a break
to handicapped children, however
much extra care they would need.
Perhaps child-hungry couples
the country Overland there must
be many suchfi or the waiting
lists at adoption agencies would
not be as long as they are-might
ask themselves if foster parent
hood might not be an answer for
them, as well as for those young
sters in their own community who
need family life. They might be
surprised at how much satisfac-
ton can be found, in giving a