(November 12, 2008) On Saturday, November 20 at 1:30 pm, local children who are currently dependents of the court will legally be adopted by their foster families at the Santa Barbara County Juvenile Court located in Santa Maria according to Julie Nicola, Court Clerk. The entire afternoon will be devoted to this as well as the celebration of other recently finalized adoptions as the Judge performs a martial-like ceremony uniting the children with their newfound forever families with a celebratory reception to follow.
The Nattell family of Santa Maria will be in attendance as they celebrate the addition of their two new family members. After trying for years to have a child of their own, Becky and Michael Nattell decided to become foster parents with the Family Care Network in 2005. The day their first foster son entered the Nattell’s home, Becky found out that she was pregnant. Having a big family was always a dream of the Nattells so they happily adopted their first foster child and plan to adopt two more on November 20th. When asked why she chose to adopt, Becky stated “There are so many [kids] that need a mom and dad that don’t have one, it just made sense to me. I wanted to have one biological child of my own but after that, having kids was my goal… I didn’t care where they came from.”
Becky said that their initial research into the adoption process through adoption agencies proved to be costly and complicated, so they turned to the Family Care Network. “When I looked into [foster care] everything fell into place perfectly.” The Nattells now have two daughters, two sons and a foster son. Becky says adopting children from foster care is especially rewarding because foster children appreciate so many of the things others take for granted, like family outings, time with Dad and being able to show off their new family through school projects.
Michael and Becky have watched their children transition from uncertainty to security, stating, “[Our foster son] had been through 14 foster homes before ours and used to go to his room and pack his stuff and say 'its time for me to go.' He went through stages of testing me by acting out every month, then every two [months]. When we knew we could officially adopt him and explained to him that he wasn’t going anywhere, [this behavior] just kind of went away.” The Nattells have given these children the chance to experience permanency and have been overwhelmed with joy to watch them blossom into healthy and happy children because of it.
Currently in Santa Maria and throughout Santa Barbara County, there is an overwhelming need for individuals and families to impact the life of a child by becoming foster parents. Foster parents can be married or single, work full-time or stay at home, have children of their own or not. Excellent tax-exempt monetary compensation is provided to meet the needs of the child and family. To be a foster parent, one needs only a compassionate heart and a willingness to impact our community for the better.
Foster parents serving Santa Barbara County are available for interviews, as are various other staff members with the Family Care Network. To learn more about how you can positively impact the life of a foster child in Santa Barbara County by becoming a foster parent, please contact the Family Care Network at (805) 781-3535 or visit fcni.org.
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