A Kids Place of Tampa Bay

The stories are eerily similar; Drug addicted mother.  Abusive father.  Abandoned by caregivers.  Who are the victims?  The children.  The toddler who swears a blue streak because those are the only words she has heard.  An angry teen who has been raised to believe that violence solves everything.  A seven year old who asks to sleep under the bed "in case his mom's boyfriend finds him while he's asleep."  These stories are real and they happen every day throughout the greater Tampa Bay area.

How does A Kid's Place help these children?  Live-in house parents provide love and stability for children who have never known what it's like to come home to a hot meal and a clean bed.  Staff trained in trauma-informed care spend time nurturing relationships and guiding children toward appropriate choices in thoughts and actions.  By allowing brothers and sisters to stay together during their time in foster care, A Kid's Place is able to build on the security of sibling relationships and lessen the trauma of family separation. 

Since opening our doors in 2009, A Kid's Place has provided over 150,000 bed nights to foster children from all over the greater Tampa Bay area.  These are children like Katrina, who entered care labeled as special needs due to her inability to make eye contact or speak.  She was slight for her three years, malnourished and pale.  She drank from a baby bottle and never cried or showed emotion.  "She doesn't talk," her brother explained matter-of-factly.  During toddler class, Katrina watched warily as the other children played, sang, and enjoyed snacks, until one day she allowed the teacher to hold her on her lap.  This continued every day until about five weeks after she'd come to A Kid's Place, when Ms. Cathy balanced Katrina on a giant exercise ball and gently bounced her, holding the little girl's eyes directly in front of her own.  Katrina broke into a shy grin before a cloud of sadness took over, but the seasoned teacher had seen a spark.  The next day, Katrina walked into class and headed toward the ball, then turned to Ms. Cathy and said clearly, "Again!"  No word was ever celebrated more than that simple request, and it wasn't long before Katrina broke out of her sadness and became a happy, verbal child again.  No longer pale or sickly, Katrina now loves to belt out "Let It Go" as she parades around in an Elsa gown and wig during class.

No child should have to experience trauma at the hands of the very people who are supposed to love and protect them.  At A Kid's Place, we realize that while we can't change what brought these children into care, we can absolutely make sure that what happens to them while they're with us is the best we're able to provide.  But we can't do it alone.

With almost 5,000 children in foster care in Hillsborough County, we all need to take action and help support programs like A Kid's Place, which provides a safe and loving home while these children begin to heal.  What does the future hold for them if no one loves and protects them now?