Summer A. / No matter how difficult it is, or how long it takes, it will be worth it.

Summer talks about her biggest challenge she faced in foster care. She speaks on was her mental health. She struggled with bipolar disorder for years without realizing that she had it. It took the love and support of her close friends to get her into therapy, which changed her life for the better.

Navigating the foster care system, one of the most difficult parts she faced in the foster care system was the feelings of instability. When she was removed from her home, it made her feel like nothing in life was permanent or stable.

The experiences she would like to see within the system is foster youth being connected with employment opportunities, community colleges, universities and affordable housing before exiting care. It seems that the system does not prepare youth for the transition into adulthood as well as it should.

She states she was being with her siblings. She also had a pet snake that she was able to keep after she was removed from her home.

"Something that the Public can do is support foster youth who want to pursue a higher education, they can maybe donate clothes, school supplies, and other things that can help uplift the young fosters to go above and beyond.."

The holidays for her while in foster care were difficult without being able to spend them with her parents. One Christmas they had a supervised visit at a Denny's with her mom, dad, and siblings. They opened their Christmas presents at the table. She’s sure other people at the restaurant thought it was weird, but it was the only way they could have Christmas with their parents.

She speaks on the barriers she faced when it came to school. Not having stable housing or reliable transportation hindered her progress towards her college degree. It would have been helpful to have a vehicle.

She wishes the general public can help by becoming adoptive or foster parents themselves. The public can also help by advocating for resources for youth. Not many former foster youth pursue a college education, and we need more resources to remove the barriers that are causing that.

As she reflects on her foster care journey, she identifies comfort something that brought her comfort was being with her siblings. She also had a pet snake that she was able to keep after she was removed from her home.

Summer states what she needed most while aging out the system, She needed to be educated on how to be an adult. She wish someone taught her how to buy a car, what car insurance is, how to fill out an apartment application, how to get a job, how to handle stress. There are so many things she had to figure out on her own.

Looking back on her foster care experience she is most proud of her resilience in continuing her education. It took her 8 years to get her associates degree, but she finally did it, and now she’s a senior at Cal State San Bernardino. She have dreams and goals, when before she never had any. Her advice to someone in foster care now is:

"Pursue high education. We need voices like yours in powerful positions. Get a degree or multiple degrees. No matter how difficult it is, or how long it takes, it will be worth it..."

She envisions herself with a MSW and being a LCSW. She would like to be working in higher education. She will hopefully own a home, and her car will be paid off. Her goals are to get a MSW, own a home, and to visit all 50 states. She loves to meditate, garden, travel, hike, and hang out with her cats.