Success Stories

There are hundreds of children in the Utah foster care system, but what you may not know is a lot of them are teenagers.

Rediet Finds Her Family on The East Coast

Redeat, was part of Raise the Future’s Youth Connections Program, which provides intensive family-finding services for the longest waiting youth in care. Kendra, a Youth Connections Advocate, started working with Redeat in June 2020 with the goal of permanently connecting her with a loving family.

Redeat had spent much of her life moving from place to place. “I moved from Africa to America when I was really young, so I didn’t understand a lot” Redeat said. In the States she entered foster care, and her life continued to be unstable and unpredictable. “Sometimes I just feel numb, because I moved around so much…I didn’t get any heads up or anything, I was just kind of ripped away.”

All of that changed on October 1st, 2021. By the time Kendra met Kim, she had spent over a year getting to know Redeat and working to identify the right family for her. From their first conversation, Kendra had a feeling that Kim and Redeat were meant for each other, and as the months went by and Kendra watched their relationship bloom, she knew she was right. “When we finally got word that I could go get her,” Kim said, they got me on a plane to Utah so fast, they knew I couldn’t possibly wait another second. “October 1st is the day that I had my daughter in my arms.”

Redeat and her family recently celebrated the one-year anniversary of her homecoming with a trip to the Big Apple, where they visited Times Square, 5th Avenue, and the Statue of Liberty. Redeat loves playing sports, and her mom loves going to her games. “The more sports the better in our house!” Kim says. Redeat now has access to adaptive sports like wheelchair basketball and attended basketball camp; she is looking forward to starting sled hockey this winter. Off the court, she delights in painting her nails with her sisters and playing with the family’s six pets, including Bighead the dog, who is an amputee like Redeat.

Rediet and Shumakers

You do not have to be rich, childless, or own your own home to adopt a child from foster care. The most important qualification is that you are committed to providing a safe, stable, and nurturing home for a child.