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Illustration by Carson McNamara

Family Matters

Local families and organizations work to improve the lives of foster kids

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Tamara Caissie’s T-shirt says it all: “Caissies’ Crew — Never a Dull Moment.” She and her husband, Eugene, currently have six children under their roof, including four siblings they’re fostering; a 13-year-old they fostered and adopted; and Hayden, 12, their youngest biological son, who has Down syndrome. The Caissies also have five adult children.

Dinners with the Caissies typically consist of big bowls of spaghetti, sloppy Joes, or grilled pork chops with mac and cheese and green beans. Friday is pizza night, and on Wednesday night, everyone gets a $5 McDonald’s Meal Deal on their way to therapy.

“You’re with me, you’re fine, you’re safe,” Caissie often tells the kids. “There’s nothing to worry about right now except for you and your schoolwork.”

A special education teacher at Arthur Ashe Elementary School, Caissie discovered five years ago that one of her students had been moving in and out of foster homes. Most of the Caissies’ children were grown — only Hayden remained at home — so she and Eugene decided to become foster parents. They filled out the paperwork, completed three months of training and in 2020 opened their home to Caissie’s student and his sister. Since then, the couple has taken in numerous children ranging in age from newborns to teenagers. They bought a bigger house, set up bunk beds and are now licensed to care for eight foster children.

“Some of the kids have been challenging but, being a special ed teacher, I can navigate around that,” Caissie says. “What they’ve been through is not their fault. These are typical kids. They need consistency and they need love. I cannot reiterate that enough.”

Virginia’s Foster Children

Just over 5,500 Virginia children are currently in foster care, according to an April 1, 2025, report by the Virginia Department of Social Services, a number that has remained more or less steady for a decade. In the central region, which includes Richmond, the children range in age from birth to over 18. Just over half of them are boys, and just under half of them are Black. About a third are white and the rest are multiracial, Hispanic, Asian or of unknown heritage.

The leading cause for removing children from their homes is neglect, followed by parental drug abuse. When a child is deemed unsafe at home, they are put into the custody of their local department of social services and then placed in a temporary home. About 46% of the commonwealth’s foster kids are living with a licensed foster family like the Caissies, while 17% live with relatives and nearly 15% are on their own or remain in limbo.

Last year, the average stay in foster care was 27 months, according to VDSS “Discharges from Foster Care” records. About half the children were either reunified with their birth families or placed with relatives, and 28% were adopted. (Of the latter group, about 70% were adopted by their foster parents.)

More than 1 in 5 kids aged out of foster care in 2024, meaning they were emancipated without a family placement. Without a parental figure in their lives, these young adults face much higher risks. They are less likely to graduate from high school or go to college than other teens and are much more likely to become homeless or pregnant, to be incarcerated, or to die by suicide, according to FosterVA, a foster care and adoption awareness campaign connected to VDSS.

Kinship Care

To improve the chances of success for foster children, Virginia lawmakers in 2024 passed legislation that prioritizes placing children with family members (i.e., kinship care) and providing them with social services and financial resources.

Del. Katrina Callsen of Charlottesville authored the Parental Child Safety Placement Program (PCSPP), which went into effect on July 1 last year. Under the new law, custody can remain with the parents while a child is placed with a relative for 90 days. During that time, the relative can receive the same benefits and support that a foster parent would for caring for the child.

The foster care program costs the state about $300 million a year, or $60,000 per child, for social services, case management, monthly stipends to foster parents, medical expenses, court hearings and more, according to VDSS. “Generally speaking, just under 50% of the kids that enter foster care are eligible for Title IV-E [federal] funds,” says a VDSS spokesperson. “The state provides a match to the federal funds at a rate of about 50%.” Title IV-E funding is authorized under the Social Security Act. VDSS had not received any information from the federal government regarding funding cuts at press time.

Kinship care costs less than foster care and can be much more beneficial for the child. “If children can’t be in their own home, they typically do better with family members or a teacher or neighbor they already trust,” says Gretchen Brown, director of social services for Henrico County. “Being with someone they know helps with placement stability and reunification, since that relative is invested in the child and likely has influence on the parent.”

A kinship caregiver may receive additional financial help if a child has been in their home for six months and if reunification with the parent has been ruled out. These KinGAP payments help with expenses such as parenting classes, school supplies and clothing, and the legal costs associated with guardianship and court appearances.

“The bill definitely helped create a standard of practice for how we serve and support children who are voluntarily placed into kinship homes outside of the foster care system,” Brown says.

Henrico County hasn’t played a significant role in placing children with relatives until recently, but now, almost half of their placements are with family members. Brown explains that children were living with relatives previously as well, but those placements are now being processed through the Department of Social Services and the caregivers are receiving benefits.

“We are able to formally assess, train and support kinship caregivers in both the PCSPP and foster care,” Brown says. Henrico County has also hired a kinship navigator dedicated to supporting caregivers with funds from the Virginia Opioid Abatement Authority, established in 2021 by the General Assembly.

Foster Parents

When family members aren’t available or fit to take custody, a child likely goes to a foster family. 

Kebra Jefferson and her husband, Christian, became first-time parents in 2017 when they fostered a 14-year-old. “It was so precious. He was experiencing so many firsts with us — his first time going to the beach, his first time picking out a real Christmas tree, his first time going trick-or-treating,” Jefferson says. “Now he’s in college and visiting us for spring break. It’s a really big deal — only 3% of foster kids go to college. I’m so proud of him.”

The Jeffersons also fostered 2- and 3-year-old siblings, whom they ended up adopting. “Now they’re 9 and 10,” Jefferson says. “One had medical needs and the other suffered quite a bit of trauma, but they’ve made a lot of progress. Our family members, our friends and our community have been so loving. My children are the only grandkids on both sides of the family, so they are spoiled rotten.”

The Jeffersons founded RestoreTFC, a private therapeutic foster care agency, in 2022. They contract with local government entities to train foster parents and place children in their care.

“Social services departments do so many good things for the community, and they have to focus on more than foster care, so agencies like ours saw the need and rose to meet it,” Jefferson says. “When my foster parents have everything they need to be successful, the child is successful. Foster parents can give us so many insights and help us determine the best needs for the child.”

Another private foster care agency is HumanKind, which has four statewide locations including one in Richmond. The Caissies are one of their most dedicated foster families.

“We license and train foster parents, carefully match children with foster families, supervise visitations with biological parents and collaborate with a range of services to ensure children receive the care they need,” says Program Manager Lee Turco. “This includes making referrals and coordinating with intensive in-home services, [applied behavior analysis] therapy, individual therapy, medication management and necessary medical appointments.” Support for foster families includes 24-hour on-call assistance, monthly training and ongoing guidance.

“One family is adopting two little girls next week,” Turco says. “It’s a success story, but that means we’re losing them as a foster family. We’re always in need of quality, loving homes — the need is high.”

Tamara Caissie adds that there are plenty of other ways people can offer support to the foster care community. “You can become a respite home for just a weekend to give foster parents a break, or you can be a short-term emergency placement — some of these kids are sleeping on their social worker’s office floor until they can find somebody,” she says. “There are lots of local organizations providing resources. I’d love a program for foster parents to get bigger vehicles so I can carry eight kids at a time.”

Support Agencies 

In addition to VDSS, foster care and adoption agencies, many organizations offer help to children in crisis situations.

Virginia’s Kids Belong works to improve the experiences and outcomes for children in foster care. Their “I Belong” project uses video storytelling to help adoption-eligible kids advocate for a family. A few kids profiled recently include 15-year-old Maddie, who loves pop star Sabrina Carpenter and TikTok; 13-year-old Tay, who plays volleyball and wants to travel; and 11-year-old Tracey, who enjoys swimming, doing hair and having sleepovers. They’re typical adolescents, all searching for families.

Richmond-based Fostering Acadia and The Success Foundation both support youth who are aging out of the foster care system. These organizations provide everything from financial planning to workforce readiness to prepare them for successful independent living.

When VDSS has difficulty placing a child into a foster home, United Methodist Family Services steps in. Celebrating its 125th anniversary this year, UMFS provides a range of services for children and families in the Richmond area.

“The children who come to us for foster care are typically teenagers, are from larger sibling groups, or have big behaviors and mental health challenges,” says Kate Ockerman, director of philanthropy.

UMFS foster parents are trained to become treatment foster care homes and provide support for more difficult cases. Even though UMFS is actively recruiting and training foster families, Ockerman says there are still more kids than there are homes. “For our staff and our foster parents, this is their life calling,” she says. “We take a lot of care to meet these kids where they are. They are not malicious or doing this on purpose. They’ve had traumatic experiences happen to them. When you see it through that lens, you just love these kids and want the best for them.”

UMFS also runs a residential facility for adolescents facing mental health crises. About 10 of its 50 patients are in foster care. Patients live and go to school on campus while undergoing treatment. “Our goal is for the kids to be ready to be placed with a family when they complete the program,” Ockerman says.

Local nonprofit Patty’s Hope takes a different approach by supporting biological mothers who have lost custody of their children. The organization was founded by Peter and Leila Gunning. In 2012, they became foster parents to a baby girl and wound up establishing a relationship with her mother, Patty. “Her story was one I would not wish on my worst enemy,” Leila Gunning says.

As they fostered more children and met more mothers, they realized many had endured traumatic experiences. As the saying goes, hurt people hurt people.

“We spend a lot of time listening and helping these women not feel alone or ashamed,” Gunning says. “It’s good for the entire family if a mom can heal, become stable and have a healthy relationship with their child. That doesn’t always equal reunification, but we hope for the best outcome for everyone.”

Patty’s Hope helps women advocate for safe housing, connect to trauma care, build a healthy community and develop life skills. Last year they opened Patty’s Thrift near Libbie Mill where women can gain job experience through a work-to-shop program. They also encourage team building and reflection through group outings to Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, Make Creative Studio and Peak Experiences.

“The physical challenge of climbing mimics the journey they’re on,” Gunning says. “It’s an awesome visual. You’re going to get to the top, but you can’t climb a mountain on your own strength. You’re not alone — you have all these people on the ground helping you.”