“The day I was removed from my home is a day I will never forget. I remember getting out of the police car and walking into a house that was not my own. Sitting on a different bed, in a different room, and missing my mom and brothers so deeply.

Even though the world kept turning, that year felt as if it stood still. I was in a season of waiting. My four brothers and I were separated into two foster homes and I can remember the nights where I missed them with such clarity. Heartache was so near to my heart and I longed to go home.

I will never forget that year of my life, but thanks to a family in my community I cannot say that year was wasted, or that it was terrible. I mourned the change and loss, but the love and kindness that was poured in my life allowed me to keep going, to find the positive, to grow and to heal. That was one of the most vulnerable moments in my childhood. I will never fully know the impact it made on my life that a family stepped up during that time to care for us in the thick of the heartache, to walk with us every step of the journey and to let us know it would be okay.

Their willingness to care for us allowed their to be beauty and healing through such a difficult and painful time. Their sacrifice, love and care changed everything.”

– Grace Saderholm, Every Child Fellow