(PresidentialHill.com)- Melania Trump recently wrote an essay about National Foster Care Month.
She describes how President Ronald Reagan declared May to be National Foster Care Month 34 years ago and how our country has an ongoing responsibility to invest in our future by supporting our foster children.
Melania says that foster care protects children, strengthens families, and gives our youngsters a brighter future. We must collaborate to create a foundation for long-term economic stability and success, particularly for older foster youngsters and those aged out of the system.
Children must be prepared to succeed as adults as part of our support. We must provide these young Americans with the skills they need to achieve their full potential through economic empowerment, mainly through increased access to resources in science, technology, and the trades.
Melania says that the 20,000 children who leave foster care each year must have the resources to acquire professional skills and succeed as adults.
She assures us that we’ve made significant progress by focusing on prevention, but we must better prepare foster youngsters for successful adulthood transitions.
Melania said thousands of youngsters entrusted to the foster care system around the country are looking for guidance, answers, and hope, and America must provide it.
She reminds us that we worked together to establish fundamental policies that benefit children throughout the epidemic. We spearheaded measures, such as the bipartisan Supporting Foster Adolescents and Families during the Pandemic Act, to give timely, sensible relief that is making a genuine impact in the lives of young people—particularly older foster youth who would have aged out of care without our help.
The former first lady warned that several child welfare programs serving the 407,000 youngsters in foster care are due to expire this year. Congress must look into these programs and make changes to make them better for our country’s children and families. In addition to assisting older foster youngsters, kinship care must be a top emphasis. As millions of families can confirm, relative caring is the next best choice for sustaining the core family structure. 2.7 million grandparents are parenting their grandkids across the country, up 7% from 2009. Around one-fifth of these grandparents have earnings that are below the poverty level.
Melania says that we need to do a better job of assisting these family caregivers. We know that keeping children with relatives is typically the best scenario, based on intuition and facts. To help these dedicated caregivers, Congress should review the licensing requirements to make it simpler to retain children with families.
She reminded us that in 1988, President Ronald Reagan urged Americans to work to guarantee children had access to healthy, caring families. We should cooperate with foster care providers to ensure that every kid has a safe and supportive environment.
Mrs. Trump stated that we must build on successful public-private collaborations, including religious child welfare providers, given the countrywide scarcity of loving, safe households for children. Our constant mission is to give assurance and assistance to all youngsters.
Melania invites Americans to join her in commemorating National Foster Care Month this May by assisting children and kids in foster care and honoring those who support them, from foster parents and caregivers to coaches and community volunteers.
“Together, we can uplift children in the foster care community and foster a brighter future,” she concluded.
