Which FFA you choose can really determine your experience as a foster parent. The good ones are going to:
- provide lots of services, such as behavioral therapy, occupational therapy, child parent interaction therapy, family therapy, respite care, etc
- be extremely up front with you about each case, including all of the problem behaviors the kids are exhibiting, whether or not they are likely to easily overcome those behaviors, whether they have ongoing special needs, and how likely their case is to end in reunification
- be reachable for questions and support when you have things come up
- have a lot of experience with a lot of different cases and know how to best work with the county and the court system
Some FFAs might be a good fit for families of faith, while others are a good fit for LGBT+ families, or with single parents, etc. There isn't necessarily a one-size-fits-all situation. Another thing to consider is how far away the FFA is, because you may need to drive there multiple times a week to receive certain services. Some FFAs have multiple offices (especially larger ones), but may offer some services in one location that they aren't able to offer in another based on their staff.
Right now we are going to info sessions and contacting multiple FFAs. We have a lot of questions we want to ask before we determine which one to work with. Once we choose one, we can start the application process, which will take a few months and will get us certified through our FFA to become foster parents.
Stay tuned for more info as we learn about the FFAs we have available to us. And stay tuned for info on what happens after we get certified (getting matched, transitions to the home, and everything that happens thereafter).
