Participant Success Stories 2007
Emmanuel, Foster Boarding Home Adolescent Unit
Fourteen year-old Emmanuel wasn’t sure at first about submitting an essay for the Annual Child Welfare Fund Awards for Youth in Foster Care, although he has been writing for as long as he can remember. But Elise Gelbman, the Educational Specialist for Good Shepherd’s Foster Boarding Home Adolescent Unit let Manny know that she has never yet failed to pick a winner when choosing a young person to nominate for the Awards, he gave it a shot. Elise’s instincts proved as sound as ever when Faith Restored in the System, Manny’s moving account of his successful struggle to make his voice heard and be adopted by his foster mother, was selected as one of five Grand Prize Winners.
Manny is considerably younger than the usual Grand Prize Winner, but few who are familiar with his work were surprised at the achievement. In the summer of 2006, he earned a place in the summer writing workshop of Represent, a national magazine written by and for foster care youth and he has since written numerous articles for the publication.
Now fifteen and in the tenth grade, Manny has been in the foster care system for seven years and with Good Shepherd for the past three years. He credits his current caseworker, Miranda, with making the difference that allowed him to believe in the system again. At a Service Plan Review meeting Manny objected to the goals and plans being discussed for him, and declared his desire to be adopted by Melba, his foster mother. He was surprised when Miranda responded by telling him that she had thought he felt that way, and had been waiting to hear it from him directly. “When I realized that she was willing to help me with my plans and my goals, I was so happy,” he recalls, “Miranda has been the best, she really listens.” His adoption by Melba is now in progress.
A voracious reader as well as a prolific writer, Manny is already thinking about college, and intends to become an English teacher. In the meantime, he is thrilled about his adoption. “It’s been a very, very long journey,” he says of his years in the foster care system, “but in the end, it was worth it.”
