Foster Movement Podcast: Lauren

July 28, 2017

We had the opportunity to sit down with Lauren Lawson who grew up living with various family members and then eventually went into the foster care system at age 12. Lauren shares her story and offers insight into some of the issues and behaviors that might exist in adolescents within the foster care system. Now a foster mom, she shares wise guidance that encourages us to consider what might be behind some of the behaviors of the children in our families.

We are then joined by Ryan North, the Executive Director of Tapestry, the Adoption and Foster Care Ministry of Irving Bible Church and leader of Empowered to Connect. Ryan and his wife Kayla train others from around the country to help couples tend to the hearts of children from hard places. In this episode, Ryan offers practical advice for foster parents on how they can learn to address and meet the needs that sometimes occur beneath the behaviors.

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Key Quote / Takeaway:

"If I see one of my little guys and they're lashing out, sometimes it's easy just as a parent, want to jump on that, squash the behavior, and tell them to knock it off. When the reality is, I don't know what's going on in their hearts. That may be their only coping mechanism because they miss mom and dad today." - Lauren Lawson, former foster youth and foster parent

Meet Our Guests

LAUREN LAWSON

Lauren Lawson is a military wife and stay at home mom to 8 wonderful children. She is a former foster youth and now a foster mom. Lauren entered foster care in back in 1992 at twelve years old and aged out after her senior year of high school. While she considers her experience in foster care fairly positive compared to most, she knows that's not always the "norm" and hopes to be a voice for kids from hard places by sharing her story. She and her husband have fostered in both California and Texas and have fostered 11 children, two of whom they've been blessed to adopt.

RYAN NORTH

Ryan is the Executive Director of Tapestry, the Adoption and Foster Care Ministry of Irving Bible Church. Tapestry serves to connect families in community, equip them for the journey, and encourage them along the way. In his capacity as the Executive Director of Tapestry, Ryan leads Empowered to Connect. He writes and speaks on adoption and foster care issues as well as the joys and challenges of Christian ministry. He and his wife Kayla have six kids, both biological and adopted, ranging in age from toddlers to teens.