Chattanooga Times Free Press: July 27, 2009
By: Clint Cooper
Sleepless nights, teething pain and diaper changes are old hat for Becky and Glen Wieldraayer.
In the past 18 years, not only have they dealt with the infant habits of their two children, but they have been foster parents for between 40 and 50 babies through an association with Bethany Christian Services of Chattanooga.
Recently, they began an additional connection with the organization as one of a network of volunteer host families called Safe Families for Children.
The program gives a home in which parents can place their children -- either by their own initiative or from a social services or community agency referral -- in a time of crisis, according to Bethany of Chattanooga Executive Director Peggy Lowe.
Her family does it, Mrs. Wieldraayer said, "because we're able, because God has given us that desire to serve him and because children are just a passion of our family."
Unlike state foster care, under Safe Families, parents do not have to relinquish their rights and can take their children back into their home when they have established stability, she said.
"The goal is for the kids to be put back into the home," Ms. Lowe said.
Parents who place their children with Safe Families or whose children are referred to the program, for instance, may be preparing to serve a brief prison sentence, may have given birth in prison or are being asked to accomplish something by the court such as a drug treatment or anger management course, she said.
The program, she said, is based on a similar one begun by the Lydia organization in Chicago.
Bethany of Chattanooga, which began its program in March, is one of three chapters of the national Bethany network to pilot Safe Families for Children.
Mrs. Wieldraayer, whose family recently kept a newborn infant for 10 days while the infant's mother found a stable home, said it was their pleasure to make the sacrifice.
"We love it," she said.
Placements -- which are not always infants and can even be teens -- are no longer than a month or two, according to Ms. Lowe, and, in the end, more than 80 percent of the children are reunited with their families. In the cases where they are not, she said, they are referred to the state.
Volunteers who agree to host children are screened and have background checks, take online training and are supported by Bethany Christian Services throughout their stay, she said.
Jenni Miles, of Chattanooga, and her husband are going through the process of being approved as a host family. She said she came across the program online while checking out the state of foster care in Chattanooga. If approved, she said, she wants to build a relationship with the families of any children they host.
"Being adoptive parents (of two children from Haiti), we have a major heart for children," she said. "We just feel like this is something God wanted us to do."
Hosts can be single, married, have children or be empty nesters, Ms. Lowe said, "as long as they have the space and a heart for kids and for reaching out to help people."
She said she hopes to recruit additional families from area churches, but hosts do not have to share the Christian beliefs of the organization.
Bethany of Chattanooga already has been given $1,000 by the Brainerd Kiwanis Club to help host families, who do not receive compensation like foster parents. But Ms. Lowe said she hopes the organization can raise additional funds.
"Everybody seems to feel it's a great idea," she said.