Selfless Love Blog

I met my mentor when I was 17 years old. At the time, I didn’t realize how vital our relationship would be for my growth. I knew adoption was not the right choice for me.

Not every youth in foster care gets adopted, and while it is a beautiful experience to have adults commit to you, it often comes with conditions.

When I think of important permanent connections and supportive people, I think of my grandmother. Throughout most of my life, she has been there.

What are personal connections? How supportive is your support system? Who makes up your support system? If you can answer these three questions with no hesitation, kudos, you are a part of something rare and remarkable.

My name is Ralynn Floyd. I have been in foster care for almost 15 years. The journey wasn’t always easy because I was too young to understand what was happening.

If I’m writing from my heart, a permanent connection is something I’ve never experienced. To me, the connection leaves when you leave care.

Have you ever wondered what goes unnoticed within the system? It may surprise you, but approximately 420,000 youth are in foster care in the United States, with a national average of 55 kids going missing in a single day.

Growing up in foster care, no one prepares you for the multitude of challenges you will face. Foster youth are susceptible to navigating challenges like abrupt placement transitions, losing contact with friends and family, and being constantly thrown into unknown environments with changing variables.

Proverbs 11:14: “Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety” (ESV). When you spend most of your childhood in the Bible Belt as I did, it’s not unusual to have an adult in your life throw out this bible verse –