Forsyth County officials are working to recruit foster parents amid a shortage of available homes.
There are only 15 foster care homes currently licensed through the Forsyth County Department of Social Services.
Torrie Smith, with DSS, says officials have had to rely heavily on private agencies as a result, often placing children outside of the county.
“So, not only are they coming to foster care, being removed from mom and dad, and often displaced from their siblings," Smith said. "But they're also having to change schools, change daycares, change medical providers, and that's really not fair for them. That's just really traumatic.”
She says the shortage is actually the result of something good — foster parents adopting the children they take in. The problem is that leaves fewer available homes for kids in need. Sometimes children are placed hours away or have to sleep in DSS offices until a licensed home opens up.
Smith says the most critical need is for foster parents willing to take in sibling groups, teenagers and medically fragile children.
More information about foster care can be found on the county website. DSS also has a recruitment line for interested foster parents. That number is 336-703-2445.