More foster homes needed within the City of Youngstown

Children's services is making a plea to people living in Youngstown to become foster parents. The city has dozens of children removed from homes every year but not nearly enough foster homes to keep them within the city limits.

Just last year, 140 children were removed from homes in Youngstown but there were only six registered foster homes in the city. That forced some of those children to have to be moved to unfamiliar places, some as far as Columbus or Cleveland, which often causes the children more trauma during an already chaotic time.

“It's important to stay in the same school districts, see the same family, the same friends, the same way of life,” Thomas Snyder, the Treatment Foster Program Lead at Mahoning County Children's Services said. 

Staying local not is not only comforting but also helps increase the chance of that child returning to their parent.

“Constant visitation is the biggest indicator of successful reunification and unfortunately if children have to go across the state visitation is not happening as frequently as we would like,” Snyder said. 

The process to become a foster parent takes about six months with several training, background and home checks but in the end leaders say the impact is huge. 

“You can make a difference in the child's life,” Richard Tvaroch, the Executive Director of Mahoning County Children Services said. “...You make an impact on their life and they're going to make an impact on you and you will both help this community thrive.”

Anyone interested in becoming a foster parent can contact Mahoning County Children's Services by calling (330) 941-8888 or visiting the website here.