Oklahoma Faces Foster Care Shortage As 6,000 Kids Await Homes For The Holidays

The state department of human services reported around 6,000 kids are in the foster care system.

It can be really tough for kids to be away from their families for the holidays, so more loving, stable homes are needed. The shortage of foster families sometimes means children are placed far from their homes.

News On 6 talked to one former foster child turned-foster parent who has found ways to make the holidays brighter for those away from their biological families.

Premadonna Braddick and her husband now have three children after adopting their second and third foster kids last week.

"I wanted to change the trajectory of these children who are definitely in need of a loving home,” said Braddick.

Braddick aged out of foster care and knows the struggles of the holiday season as both a foster child and parent. She has been wanting to make a difference, so last Christmas, she invited a teenage girl to her home for the holidays.

"We were able to have a foster kid whose group home closed down and they didn't have anywhere for her to go, and we always have matching pajamas and she was able to be a part of the matching pajama tradition that we have,” said Braddick.

ShaRhonda Hurd with Wesleyan Youth, which is a foster care agency, said Oklahoma desperately needs more foster homes.

"This time of year, especially, there are children who do not have homes and who are in need of a family to just even for the holiday time,” said Hurd.

Lori Franklin with OU-Tulsa's School of Social Work said it is important for our community to help foster families.

She said while not everyone can take in a child, we can all donate our time and money.

"DHS runs a wonderful program called Holiday Hope. There's also a program called Fostering Connections that does work year-round to help donate things and resources that families may need,” said Franklin.

This Christmas, Braddick and her husband are excited to become a family of five.

"It feels good to know that my children have a forever home,” said Braddick.

Braddick has a nonprofit called Soaring Eagles to help families break the cycle of intergenerational trauma. You can learn more about it here.

Other resources:

Holiday Hope: https://oklahoma.gov/okdhs/services/foster/holidayhope.html

Fostering Connections: https://www.fosteringconnectionsok.org/

For more information on how to get involved in the foster care system, call 800-376-9729.