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Foster youths rally to fight possible cuts to funding

'Aging out' of the system leaves youths struggling to fund their basic needs

By Adam Wilson | The Olympian • Published February 14, 2009

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Kandace Jones said her five-year stay in foster care ended abruptly when she turned 18.

Photo Gallery:

Foster Care Rally at the Capitol

"I actually got kicked out on my birthday. ... I called home from school, and they said, 'Actually, you can't come home,' " she said. "So I didn't have anywhere I could go."

Jones, 21, of Olympia, got help from Community Youth Services. She has worked at a bowling alley for two years, has a 7-month-old son and a fiance, and shouted herself hoarse at the Capitol on Friday.

She and more than 200 other foster youths marched Friday at the Capitol Campus, hoping their stories will sway legislators considering what programs to cut in a recession-induced budget crunch.

The top priority for many was the Independent Youth Housing program. The two-year-old program allows the state to pay some rent for foster youths, such as Jones, after they "age out" of the system at 18 and no longer live with families.

"It's the difference between being in survival mode or being stable and going after employment, education," said Megan Burr, a housing specialist with Community Youth Services.

The funding for the program is jeopardized by the state's $6 billion shortfall in tax income over the next two years.

Gov. Chris Gregoire proposed ending enrollment in the housing program and others aimed at people ages 18 to 21.

"When you cut, you look at the least vulnerable," said Randy Hart, director of the state Children's Administration. "These kids, if you cut there, there will be consequences, but they are probably less than they would be for younger kids. But still, it's hard."

Mockingbird Society executive director Jim Theofelis organized Friday's rally in the hope that legislators will have second thoughts after hearing directly from former wards of the state.

The stories include Diane Jordan's. She was in the foster-care system from age 1 to 6, then stayed with relatives and eventually landed in Pathways, a Seattle group home.

She turns 18 next month and says some help with rent would help.

"I don't think a lot of people want to mooch off the system, but they need a place to live," Jordan said. "It's pretty hard to support yourself when you don't have a place to live. That's the main issue; that's the most important thing."

Several lawmakers visited the group to offer encouragement, including Rep. Eric Pettigrew, D-Seattle.

"The state should be the primary example of good parenting," he told the crowd. "And you should not accept anything else."