Foster parents heard God’s call to service on the radio

Posted: 5/26/06

Foster parents heard God’s
call to service on the radio

By Miranda Bradley

Children at Heart Ministries

AUSTIN—When Rabecca and Scott Bamford decided they wanted to make an impact on young lives by becoming foster parents, they believe God used a radio commercial to lead them to just the right place.

“We’ve been blessed with a nice home and a good job,” Mrs. Bamford said. “So we knew this was the right time.”

The Bamfords began to search for a program that suited their needs, but, at first, it was hit or miss.

“Our first certification classes were with a for-profit organization, and it just wasn’t what we were looking for,” Mrs. Bamford said. “I didn’t feel like they offered much hope for the kids. It always drained me.”

But on his way to work one morning, her husband heard an advertisement on a local Christian radio station for the STARRY foster care program.

“We just knew that was too much of a God thing to pass up,” Mrs. Bamford said. “We called STARRY right away.”

STARRY, part of Children at Heart Ministries in Round Rock, provides services to children and families through its emergency shelter, community-based counseling and foster care programs. It recently expanded its foster care program to meet a growing demand for temporary in-home placement.

The partnership with radio station KLOVE had begun just three months earlier, when STARRY became a spotlight ministry for the station.

An advertising spot highlighting the organization’s need for foster parents was a huge success, sparking many inquiries from people who sought a faith-based child placement agency.

“It was really a wonderful collaboration,” said Stacy Grant, STARRY foster care coordinator. “We had several people contact us just because of the ad, and even better was the fact that they were Christian individuals seeking to share their homes with needy children. It was more than we had hoped.”

The Bamfords found what they had been seeking in STARRY.

“They focus on bringing restoration and healing to the children and their caregivers,” Mrs. Bamford said. “STARRY really strives to bring healing to the entire family, so they can be reunited with their children.”

Instead of focusing only on legalities in training and orientation, the Bamfords discovered the STARRY courses for foster parents taught something much more valuable.

“At STARRY, it’s truly about seeing through the eyes of the child and the parents,” Mrs. Bamford said. “It’s not about judgment, just loving them and meeting them where they are.”

With one class to complete before their certification, the Bamfords eagerly await their first placement. As a home-schooling stay-at-home mother of two, Mrs. Bamford looks forward to welcoming their new addition, whoever he or she may be.

“Our children are very excited, too,” she said. “They just can’t wait to have a playmate.”

Christina, 11, and Michael, 8, are a big reason the Bamfords decided to become foster parents in the first place.

“We want them to remember always that God blesses us so we can bless others,” Mrs. Bamford said.

“That’s why it’s important that they are part of this process. It’s the most important lesson we can teach them or anyone we bring into this family.”

For more information on foster care, contact Stacy Grant at (512) 246-4229. For other inquiries, contact STARRY directly at (512) 246-4290 or visit www.starry online.org.