Before arriving in his Greater Hope resource/foster home, eight-year-old Anthony (name changed to protect confidentiality) was moved to five different homes in less than two years. Anthony, who entered foster care when he was only two years old, was deemed extremely high needs. Family after family did their best to care for him, but ultimately found his behavior too overwhelming. His Greater Hope foster mom, Mary (name changed) is a seasoned foster parent, having fostered for 19 years and adopted two children. But even for her, caring for Anthony was incredibly challenging. She openly told her Greater Hope Parent Partner, “The only way I was able to make it was because of you.”
Mary and Anthony’s Greater Hope care team, which includes a Therapist, Mental Health Specialist, Parent Partner and Clinical Social Worker, has worked closely with them. Mary meets with the team both one-on-one and in group workshops/training. Mary and Anthony spent the afternoon of Saturday, September 22, 2023 at the Greater Hope Victorville office, completing a therapeutic A Window Between Worlds Art Expression activity. Together, the two created their own Happy Jars, alongside 13 other resource/foster parents and children. The hands-on creation of art has been shown to reduce distress, increase self-reflection and self-awareness, alter behavior and thinking patterns, have positive physical effects and build resilience.
The session began by listening to the Pharrell Williams song, “Happy” to get everyone in the happy frame of mind. Then, using a long, thin strip of paper, participants were asked to think about and then write or draw what makes them feel happy. They were then invited to select tactile items from 20 different bins to put into their jars. The bins were overflowing with items such as whistles, rings, small erasers in the shape of food, glitter, fuzzy pom poms, bouncy balls and more. Anthony delighted in the activity, grabbing Nintendo stickers for the exterior of his jar and bouncy soccer balls for the interior. During clean up, Anthony kept opening his jar, pouring out the contents and throwing them around the room. The Greater Hope Clinical staff leading the activity patiently instructed him to keep his jar closed, as “We want to keep all the happiness inside, and look at it from the outside, in the future, when we are feeling sad.” Anthony was immediately convinced this was the right course of action and ceased the mess making. Mary and Anthony left beaming, gingerly carrying their happy jars.
Over the last few months, Anthony has stopped running away. He has stopped compulsively lying and tearing holes in the drywall of his home. He knows he is safe. After six years in foster care, Anthony is on track to be adopted by Mary. The San Bernardino County Social Worker assigned to Anthony has been blown away by Mary and all she has done to support him. He has told Mary and the Court, “Anthony would be in a Group Home if it weren’t for Mary. He has improved so much in his home.”
