Branch House
An Interview with Emily Nienhuis, Branch House
The Branch House Ministry is our outreach to foster and adoptive families. Emily Nienhuis, the team leader, also works with One Heart Family Ministry, an organization that also deals with foster and adoptive families.
Why do you have such a heart for a ministry with foster and adoptive families?
The Lord started planting those seeds 17 years ago when my parents became foster parents. He's been training me to do this through many different experiences in my life.
Is it hard?
Yes- being a foster/adoptive parent can be very challenging. As a foster/adop tive parent you are bringing children into you home that have come from difficult circumstances. You are also working with a government system that has a lot of problems. But all foster/adoptive parents will tell you that all the hard work is worth it in the end. We are all incredibly blessed to have these children in our homes.
Are you in the position to be able to rectify the situation?
Yes- as Christians we need to step up and do what the Lord has called us to do and love the orphan. There are thousands of kids here in St. Louis that are stuck in the foster care system and need adoptive families. There are millions of children around the world that need loving Christian homes. We can make a difference, one child at a time.
One of the things people have mentioned to me is the risk of having state intrusion into the home of those who would like to foster and adopt. Can it be that annoying to have someone checking on your family even though we know that the state needs to do its job to ensure the foster children are being cared for properly?
When you become a foster family you agree to work with a team of social workers, CASA workers, and others. It is just their job to make sure things are going OK. It becomes difficult when you are working with people who are not doing their job properly. Not everyone remembers to make decisions based on the best interests of the children.
Another risk that I have heard people talk about is the heartbreak that can be there as a foster parent becomes involved with a child and then that child leaves them.
As a foster parent not intending to adopt, you go into it knowing you will love and let go. But it is devastating when you have intentions of adopting and then the child is turned over to biological parents. As a foster parent you want what's best for the child, but it can be very hard to let go when a child has been with you for several months or several years. It is the grace and mercy of the Lord that gives you the strength to do it again. Some of us just start to heal by getting ready for the next child.
What are the possible effects on the biological children of a family when they take in a foster child?
Personally, it was my experiences growing up in a foster and adoptive family that led me to do the same thing. But as a kid we just loved getting new babies all the time. For families that bring in older kids it is more demanding on mom and dad's time and you learn to share that time. But it is no more difficult than any family with lots of kids. All in all this is a family ministry and everyone needs to know that there are some days that mom will have to spend more time with the foster child.
The parents need to remind the family that it is an ongoing ministry and that right now these foster children don't have a family and that they need to be their family right now and love on them.
Are there many families that aren't candidates for fostering?
There are many avenues to foster and adopt, many ages of children, and there are ways that a family can minister in this area that is tailored to their individual situation. When a family comes to me I give them many different options.
