Blog

Hello! I am Maggie Garcia, Stanford Sierra Youth & Families’ new Community Engagement Coordinator! I am currently based in Sacramento, but was born and raised in the Central Valley. I graduated from UC Merced with a Bachelor of Science in Management and Business Economics. During my time there, I was able to create my own opportunities and find my true passions – marketing, design, and anything digital which led me to pursue marketing roles in the health promotion, sports, entertainment, beverage, and renewable energy industries. 

Sean* (15) and Ricky* (14) are brothers. Sometimes they work with their dad, who owns a landscaping business. During the week, their mom drives them to school, music lessons, and team sports. With so much going on, the family often eats dinner separately, but every Sunday night, they sit down together to reflect on the week gone by and discuss the one ahead. Sean and Ricky lead meaningful lives, enriched by family and friends, but it wasn’t always this way.

After many years of trying to grow their family, the Osorios were matched with a pair of siblings, Mackenzie and Noah.  Before joining the Osorios, Mackenzie and Noah had had very little exposure to the outside world.  They were emotionally dysregulated and in need of many forms of care.

Mackenzie often had tantrums.  She would throw and destroy objects around the house.  Noah had never seen a dentist.  Cavities in his baby teeth had spread to his adult teeth, which hadn’t come in yet.  Both children suffered developmental delays.

Erin* was 12 years old when she was removed from an abusive household and placed with a resource family in the foster care system. Like many traumatized children, Erin showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. Frequent nightmares made sleeping difficult. During the day she could be irritable and easily upset. She was hypervigilant when around others and preferred to spend time alone in her room.  

Breanna* grew up in an unsafe environment. Her mother was involved with illegal drugs, and her mother’s partner was at times physically violent. Breanna was often left alone for the better part of a day, sometimes with not enough to eat. When she was eight years old, Child Protective Services removed her from the home for her own safety.

We matched Kate about three and a half years ago when Samantha was six years old. Samantha was living in a foster home at the time and the family learned about the Wonder Mentoring Program through their social worker. Five months after the match started, for reasons unclear to us, the child was moved abruptly out of that home. Her grandparents, Raymond Foster and Rebecca Rice, stepped in to care of her. 

Before Daniel was nine years old, he’d been physically and sexually abused, exposed to domestic violence, and removed from his parents’ home for his own safety. Child Protective Services placed him with his aunt and uncle. Daniel suffered tremendously from the effects of the trauma he’d endured. He was depressed, fearful, and occasionally aggressive.

As the holidays draw near, we might start thinking about gatherings with family, festive dinners, and an overwhelming sense of joy. We are also reminded that not everyone has a place for the holidays, especially children in foster care. Children like Skylar*.

Jessie* first entered foster care when she was very young and although she was adopted, she always wrestled with feelings of abandonment from her biological family. When she was 13 years old, Jessie entered foster care for the second time, because her adoptive mother was no longer willing to take care of her. For the next 2 years, she was shuffled from group home to group home, feeling abandoned, lonely, and further traumatized. She suffered from anxiety, had trouble making friends, and sometimes she hurt herself.