ATLANTA – In the United States, foster care serves as a critical safety net for children who have experienced neglect, abuse, or the absence of a stable family environment. While the system aims to provide care and support, at age 18, that all ends when they age out of the foster care system. This year alone, 20,000 young women and men will be forced out of foster care. One young woman who “aged out” is helping others transition one suitcase at a time.
“We were homeless. We lived in empty houses, we put our food literally, I remember putting our food, milk, eggs, and cheese in the snow. That was our refrigerator,” says Brittney Sherell, founder of A Suitcase and A Dream.
Sherell, along with her twin sister and two other siblings, went into foster care when she was 10 years old, carrying everything she owned in a trash bag.
“I remember a foster parent being able to pick up the phone and say that I can’t be here anymore. I remember feeling lonely. I remember being angry and ... cutting my wrists and remember wanting to die,” spoke Sherell.
She lived in seven foster homes and one group home. When she aged out, she followed a childhood dream to move from Michigan to Atlanta.
“I came here with literally a suitcase and dreams of living here,” Sherell said.
But that suitcase carried so much more than a few clothes.
“In my suitcase, I carried neglect, I carried abandonment, rape, I carried so much in my suitcase. And the older I got; I realized it was really dragging me,” spoke Sherell.
It’s a struggle so many foster kids face. Only half of foster kids finish high school and just 3% earn a college degree. Up to 36% spend time in jail, 20 to 40% experience homelessness, and by age 24, only half are employed.
“I had to steal. I was 5 or 6 years old going to the corner store, pushing my younger brother in the stroller, and putting all types of milk and cereal, just things that we could eat that I can make as a 5 or 6-year-old myself,” said Sherell.
Shaylynn Dixon’s experience in foster care led her to Sherell and A Suitcase and A Dream, a nonprofit created by Sherell that helps connect former foster kids with resources and provides them with their own suitcases full of essentials. It was inspired by her book that she hopes will motivate other foster kids to unpack the trauma of their past and write their own future.
“The suitcase is really just a beacon of hope for them as they go through that journey from foster to prosper,” Dixon said.
“Now in my suitcase is, it’s healing. Peace, comfort, a sense of feeling safe. Those are things that we’ve put in our suitcases when we learn how to unpack,” spoke Sharell.
Several states have implemented extended foster care programs from 18 to at least 21, and have started life skills training teaching financial literacy, career development, and independent living skills. Organizations like Foster Club and the National Resource Center for Youth Development offer free resources and guidance in this area. You can find out more and learn about ways you can help at https://www.suitcasedreams.org. You can buy also Sherell’s book, “A Suitcase and A Dream,” on Amazon.
Sources: https://www.suitcasedreams.org
Contributors to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, Producer; Matt Goldschmidt Videographer; Roque Correa, Editor.
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