Teen Finds Forever Home

Reggie was four years old when the police removed him from his birth family. Because his mother was mentally ill and physically abusive, and his father was using drugs, Reggie entered the foster care system.

For five years, as he moved between foster homes, he showed signs of developmental delays and a learning disability. He  was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and medicated for ADHD. When he was adopted at age nine, he hoped his problems were over. But Reggie’s teachers accused the adoptive parents of abuse, and Reggie re-entered the system. He spent his middle-school years living with foster parents. About a year ago he took a big step: He agreed to stay with a couple in Rolla, two hours away from his hometown.

Last fall Joe, Emma and 16-year-old Reggie agreed to be a “forever family.” They completed adoption proceedings in November, 2016.

A Foster Care Case Manager from PCHAS handled the last year of Reggie's struggle in foster care. Read the complete story here in the Bridge newsletter, Winter 2017.