Annual Foster Care Banquet 2002

Below is a snapshot of some of the activities from this years banquet. Narration by Glenn Walker, Foster Care Coordinator.

Welcome to the annual foster care banquet. It is wonderful to see all of you who are here this evening. We are going to begin our meal, but before we do, it has always been tradition that we give grace first. This year I thought I would do this. I would like to do that now:

I would like to invite the Executive Director of the agency, Edward Vale, to come up and say a few words.

I would now like to invite the president of our board, Randy VanZeumeren, to come up now and say a few words.

As you are all aware, this position as foster care coordinator for the county is new for me. It has been a fantastic opportunity for me to learn and develop skills in other areas of social work practice than I*m accustomed to. I*ve been enjoying it very much. It has also been a wonderful opportunity to spend time with and get to know our foster parents, and to be a part of meeting such an important need in our communities. You are all very special people who truly commit and devote your attention, time and love to our most needy of kids.

I recently traveled down to East Hants and was interviewed by the Weekly Press newspaper. They asked me what I look for in a foster parent. I started talking about the 1 800 recruitment number; the comprehensive assessment we need to complete on all new prospective homes; background checks (police and Child abuse registry); orientation; etc... I said you need to have patience because it is a long approval process. She stopped me, looking a little annoyed and said: that*s fine, you can go out and do your job, but I*m trying to hook them into becoming foster parents in this article. Just give me something simple. I just said stability, time, commitment and love. Essentially, these are the important attributes you all possess, and is so important in the lives the children we have in care in Hants County. By the way, this year we have an article about fostering appearing this week in both the Weekly Press and The Hants Journal.

Our numbers are small, but there*s a lot of heart in our program. It amazes me how committed you all to doing your utmost for children in need of alternative care arrangements. And we certainly have taken advantage of this fact, filling most of your home to the rafters at some point. It has been a privilege to be a part of something so valuable and important, but I just help and facilitate what you do.

I have some small door prizes donated by different business in the community. I have the names of the foster parents here tonight in this hat and I am going to draw from it. When I call your name, could you come up and get your door prize.

Door Prize draw

On the table over there, we have placed potted flowers. There is one for each family, and all of the foster families in Hants County will be receiving them through delivery if they are not present here tonight.

People (from left to right) :
Sandra Eldridge
Esther Bartlett
Jill Wilson
Esther Bartlett, Debbie Thibeau & Edward Vale