The team at FosterMore is proud to share the story of Lisa Joyner who is a good influence in the foster care community.
Lisa’s involvement with foster care started at birth when she was placed in care, and then adopted at approximately three months of age.
Now in her adult life, Lisa has committed to helping foster youth in many ways including by helping reunite biological families that are separated by adoption or being placed into foster care. She has even done this on two different television shows, ABC’s Find my Family and Long Lost Family on TLC.
Lisa shared this moving story from one of the reunions she helped establish:
“I worked with a woman who at 4 years old remembers being loaded up into a car with her two older siblings and dropped off at different foster homes without any explanation. Even at that young age, she was able to recall the fear and sadness of being the final kid left behind, never to see or hear from her siblings again. I found out that her biological mother was unable to care for the children because of addiction and trouble with the law. Forty years later, we were able to find her younger sister who had also been searching for her since she was 18 years old. Being a small part of their life-long search was a privilege. Through many such experiences, including my own, it has become a passion to help those who are touched by foster care.”
Lisa also works with many outstanding organizations that directly impact the foster care community including Raise a Child, Alliance of Moms, and the San Fernando Valley Rescue Mission.
She works with Raise A Child on their recruitment efforts, education, and nurtures supportive relationships with prospective foster and adoptive parents. At Alliance of Moms, she is part of a community of philanthropists who support pregnant and parenting teens in LA’s foster care community with the goal of helping each build a positive future for themselves and their children. Finally, Lisa’s work alongside the San Fernando Valley Rescue Mission, a 90-bed family shelter, offers hope in the form of safe shelter and supportive housing to families who are experiencing homelessness.
Lisa has devoted so much of her energy and love to help foster youth in need. If you are considering also getting involved in the foster care community, here is how Lisa recommends you can make the biggest impact:
“If you have the ability, become a foster parent. If not, think about mentoring a child in foster care. The statistics for kids in foster care becoming teen mothers and repeating the cycle is a crisis. Studies show that if children and teens in foster care have mentors to model appropriate behavior and provide guidance, it will help them in developing healthy relationships.”
Thank you for your ongoing influence in our community, Lisa. We hope your story inspires others to make a difference in the lives of foster youth across the country.
