?By Debbie Shelley
Assistant Editor
Foster children who are available for adoption had an opportunity to spend an ideal summer day ? running, jumping, sliding in and splashing around in water, and enjoying icepops, pizza and other goodies ? at the Summer Splash Day at St. George Church in Baton Rouge on June 25. They also had a chance to meet prospective adoptive parents.
Adoptive children race on a slip and slide at the Summer Splash Day at St. George Church in Baton Rouge. ?Photo by Debbie Shelley | The Catholic Commentator
St. George, along with Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Baton Rouge and the Department of Children and Family Services, sponsored the event.
On hand were parents who have had happy foster and adoptive experiences, including James and Jessica Pursifull, who have been foster parents for 4 1/2 years and have had 28 children of various ages and races placed in their home. They have adopted two of those children, Victoria and Violet, who joined their other four children, Brandon, 18, Brookney, 17, Stephen, 14, and Sarah, 13. Victoria and Violet?s grandparents had unsuccessfully tried to raise them and offered to let the Pursifulls adopt them.
Jessica Pursifull said her adoptive father, Randall LeBlanc, adopted her when her mother, Diana LeBlanc, married him and, out of appreciation, she wanted to provide a stable adoptive home for children. The Pursifulls had considered going to an adoption agency, but decided to become foster parents after they learned about the flexibility in choosing the kind of children they would like to foster.
?There are some who don?t want newborn babies, but we love them,? James Pursifull said.
He stated the first foster children they cared for were four siblings whose mother was on crack and unable to care for them. ?It was quite an experience. They are all beautiful kids,? James Pursifull said.
He added that making a difference in the lives of children is a rewarding experience.
?I think that being in a loving, caring home makes a difference. You see a change almost immediately when they get in the right environment. That?s why more foster parents are needed,? he said.
The hardest part of being a foster parent is saying goodbye to the children when they are adopted or reunited with their biological families.
The couple said they hope to continue bringing foster children into their home.
James and Dawn Evans, also present at the Summer Splash Day, became permanent foster parents of John seven years ago, when he was 13. The Evanses also have three biological children: James Jr., 28, Sheila, 33, and India, 13.
James Evans said, ?Some adjustments had to be made because when children reach a certain age, they have their certain ways of doing things. And we have our ways of doing things.?
He stressed, ?But in the end it is rewarding.?
James Evans noted that while John still faces some challenges, ?the chapter is still being written.? He stated that John loves and is loved by his immediate and extended family. India Evans said she and her new sibling sometimes fuss at each other, but, showing a picture of John and their family in her iPod, she stated she was happy to call him ?brother.?
Three years ago on Mother?s Day, John gave Dawn Evans a plaque which said, ?For all the things you do, I love you.? She placed it on a dresser in her bedroom.
This past Father?s Day, John gave a letter to James Evans that said he was the best father; the letter also described John?s favorite memories of being with the Evans family, such as fishing at the lake.
?It really made me proud,? James Evans said. ?He took time to write it in his own hand, saying how we were always there for him in the good times and bad and that even when the relationship didn?t go well, we were still there for him.?
The Evanses said they are looking forward to the day when John will marry and have children for them to dote on. Stating that it is ?more blessed to give than to receive,? James Evans encouraged people to support the foster care program. ?Everyone can contribute something,? he said. ?There is a great need and I pray about that.?
Anyone who is interested in becoming a certified foster or adoptive parent can contact the Department of Children and?Family Services at 225-922-2929 or visit dcfs.louisiana.gov.
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Source: http://thecatholiccommentator.atomicnewstools.com/pages/?p=3357
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