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As of 2011, the total amount of children in foster care for Merced County is 602 according to kidsdata.org. Shee’lynn Gilbert is a sixteen-year-old junior at Valley Community High School. Her mother struggled with substance abuse and as a result Shee’lynn was removed from her home. She entered foster care when she was four years old and is still in the system today. Shee’lynn was with her foster mother for years, then they began having problems. Shee’lynn says, “I felt like she began to see me as an obstacle or a burden.”
She became physically and verbally abusive towards Shee’lynn. The woman would feed Shee’lynn stories about her biological mother, trying to convince her that she was a bad person.
When Shee’lynn went to her social worker with this news, she didn’t believe her. Further investigation was put into the case and Shee’lynn was removed from the home. Shee’lynn never believed the stories she heard about her mother, she says always felt like she wanted to get to know her biological mother before she lost the chance to have her questions answered. Once she was removed from her previous home, she began to run away from the new homes she was placed in search for her mother. Through word of mouth she reached a friend of her mothers who contacted Amber Gilbert, Shee’lynns mom. Amber and Shee’lynn arranged a meeting and were reunited after 11 years of being seperated.
[pullquote_left]Even though she didn’t have a picture perfect experience, Shee’lynn says she was very fortunate not to have lived with any really bad foster parents. She also feels that “people should become foster parents because they want to help the kids, not ‘cause it’s a paycheck. I don’t feel we should be a job, we should be a priority.”[/pullquote_left]
Amber went through a rehabilitation program and tried to regain custody of her daughter but due to her criminal record, the court ruled that she was unfit. Shee’lynn had been moved to a total of 15 different foster homes. According to kidsdata.org 63.7% of children who entered foster care in California in the first half of 2007 were reunified with their parents within 48 months. She has been living with her grandmother, who has custody of her and her younger brother, for about a year now.
She also has a new social worker named Don Taylor with whom she’s had a good relationship with for the past three and a half years. They meet once a month and have a more formal check up every six months. Don directs Shee’lynn to resources such as the Independent Living Program. She is apart of ILP where she receives skills for money management in a class once a week. She hopes to join the military, possibly the Marines, after high school, “I feel the military will help me find self discipline,” she says. She feels her overall experience in the foster care system has been better then most.
Even though she didn’t have a picture perfect experience, Shee’lynn says she was very fortunate not to have lived with any really bad foster parents. She also feels that “people should become foster parents because they want to help the kids, not ‘cause it’s a paycheck. I don’t feel we should be a job, we should be a priority.”
I’ve continued to stay in touch with my brother. His social workers are aware that I am his sister and I want to find out how often I can visit him and if possible, be updated on his case. As for gaining custody of him, for now I’m visiting him when possible and keeping as much contact with him as is allowed. I love my brother and as he grows older and if he continues to go through the foster care system he can be assured that I am going to constantly support him in his life however I can. I just want to be there to help guide him and let him know that I am there for him like I’ve always wanted to be.
