My name is Sade, and I want to tell my story. Before attending college, I lived in foster homes all across the Tampa Bay area for approximately ten years. My mother was a single parent raising five children in a community where there was always drugs and violence. I was just nine years old when the Department of Children and Families came into my home and distorted my life forever.
My siblings and I were split up immediately because five children were just too much for just one foster parent to handle. There was no family or friends that were willing to take us in because once again it was just too many of us. After two years of supervised visitations with my mother and several missed court dates on her behalf, the courts terminated her rights forever. This affected me and my siblings, some for the better and others for the worse. We were left in the system to fend for ourselves and all five of us were living a different life. I had to learn immediately how to adjust to different cultures, ethics, and values because no family was the same. From elementary to middle school, I had been placed in several different foster homes, which hindered me from establishing a good relationship with my peers and any foster family.
After my experience in many homes, I was determined to find a home that made me feel secure and a part of their family. My freshman year in high school, I was placed in a home in Thonotosassa, FL, with Mrs. Jackson where I lived until I was eighteen years old. Living with Ms. Jackson changed my life for the better. When I arrived at my new home, I noticed that there were girls my age and in some way resembled me. We all had the same skin tone, hair, and features. There were like my sisters I never knew. We attended the same school, some ahead of the others but during that time, I was just glad I had someone equal I could talk to daily.
I attended Armwood High School in Seffner, FL, for four years; this gave me the opportunity to establish a good relationship with my peers, faculty and staff. I was a part of the Homecoming Court two consecutive years. I was also involved with a variety of clubs and student government. In the tenth grade, I learned about college and ever since that became a new goal in my live. Outside of school, I attended Project Upward Bound at USF each Saturday where I was able to concentrate on my studies, meet more people, and practice test-taking skills. For once in my life, I felt equal as others. My foster mother took me to the program every weekend and helped me understand what college as all about. I still keep in touch with her over the phone and at our local church. She always encouraged me to stay focused and to do the right thing. Never in my life have I felt equal until I found my new home.
Today I am a senior at the University of South Florida majoring in Economics with a minor in Public Health. After graduating this fall, I plan to attend graduate school out of state pursuing a master’s degree in Health Care Administration.
Sincerely,
Sade