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Jamie is the author of Foster the Family, founder and President of Foster the Family, host of the Real Mom podcast, founder and owner of Goods and Better, and a sought-after speaker for retreats, conferences, and events for foster and adoptive parents. Her popular social media accounts offer a glimpse into the real life of a foster parent and provide encouragement to thousands of foster parents. Jamie is the mother of six children, through birth, adoption, and foster care. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, Alan.
After loving and caring for 30+ nieces and nephews that spent varying amounts of time as part of their family through the foster care system, Justice and his wife, Hannah, began the process of becoming licensed foster parents within 90 days of their wedding. Over the last 4 years, Justice and Hannah have welcomed six children, at different times, into their home, while one beautiful little girl has joined their family forever. Now, with the biological daughter as well, they're a family of four, still licensed and open to God's call on the lives of every Christian to care for orphans and widows in their affliction. Justice is passionate about foster care functioning as a mechanism to offer care and support to entire families; prioritizing the child's safety, psyche, and overall well-being while humbly recognizing the sanctity of God's sovereign design to uniquely build and maintain families according to His good will. His driving motivations in his efforts with Foster The Family are to see foster parents on the frontlines of orphan care educated, supported, and empowered to do the hard work of foster care and to prioritize, even at great cost, all of the varying needs of children who have been victimized, abused, neglected, abandoned, or otherwise removed from their family of origin and placed into foster care.
Outside of his work with Foster The Family, Justice is a self-employed entrepreneur, owning and operating many different businesses in multiple cities and states across various industries including entertainment, food service, retail, real estate, and online commerce. Justice's passion on the board is to help identify potential areas of weakness across the ministries infrastructure, from program to policy, and offer solutions that will fortify the weak points and strengthen the integrity of the ministry to accomplish its mission.
Andrea Thorpe, wife and mother of three daughters, is a certified and creative educator with over twenty-five years of professional teaching experience in public school, homeschool, and private school environments. Since becoming a mother, Andrea’s desire to help families create and maintain healthy, loving, and long-lasting relationships continues to grow. She enjoys serving on the Executive Board, where she uses her strong organizational skills to bolster Foster the Family’s mission of supporting foster families and strengthening the bonds among them.
Megan holds a MSW from Rutgers University and began her social work career as a foster care caseworker and then supervisor at Bethany Christian Services. She appreciated her years of working with biological parents to find resources necessary to achieve reunification while also working towards permanency through adoption when reunification was possible, all while trying to support foster parents in their role. Working with biological and foster parents, along with the state agencies and service providers gave Megan a passion for developing a system of professionals and families that work well together towards the best interest and permanency of the children.
After growing up in the foster care system, the Lord put a passion in Mary to adopt two children and also work in family ministry. She seen in all of these areas a need for family support and community and has worked in various roles in family education and foster/adoptive support throughout her career and personal life.
Josh Volz has been serving with Foster the Family since its inception. His involvement and passion for the ministry stems from his own experiences with foster care. He and wife have fostered and adopted multiple children and know firsthand the difficult challenges and intense joys involved. He is passionate about foster and adoptive families receiving the care and support they need to continue the mission of loving vulnerable children and their families. He believes the world of foster care and adoption is a sad, scary, messy world, but can also be so redeeming and beautiful.
Josh owns and operates a group of retail stores that include fast casual food service, escape rooms, and sunglasses shops.
Robin Young joined the Foster the Family Board in 2021. As an educator for over 30 years, she is passionate about children and has seen first-hand the urgent need for support for foster children and their families. Now a retired teacher, Robin is excited to bring decades of event planning and past non-profit board experience to the FTF organization. She and her husband Chris, who is an adoptee, live in Medford Lakes. They have three children and three grandchildren!
Savannah is a former foster and adopted youth who experienced five placements throughout her childhood. After an incredible healing journey, she has dedicated her career to helping families and vulnerable children find healing and the ability to thrive long-term. Savannah holds a master’s degree in Nonprofit Administration and a decade of nonprofit leadership and consulting experience. She lives with her husband and two children in Central Texas.
Micah is a mom of five (three through biology, two through foster care and then adoption) and has been foster parent with her husband since 2017. Between her early career as a middle-school teacher and the 17 years she has been a pastor's wife, much of her adult life has centered around training, equipping, and encouraging others. Her role at Foster the Family allows her to combine those skills with her experience in the world of foster care and adoption. She cares deeply about helping other foster moms have access to spaces where they can share their frustrations with people who understand and gain insight and perspective to help them press on.
Trish makes her home on the West Coast where she enjoys daily walks in the sun with herdogs. Having newly become an empty nester, Trish also enjoys weekend trips to visit her sonwho is studying at the University of Arizona. Trish adopted her son as a single parent through acounty fost-adopt program. Recently, Trish has chosen to move from a profit-making career toworking with nonprofits that are mission driven to improve the lives of children and families inthe foster and adoptive community.
Danika is an adoptive foster mom passionate about hope, healing, and belonging for all touched by the child welfare system. Her heart beats for children to feel safe and valued, and for families to feel championed. After receiving her masters in nonprofit management, Danika has spent a decade in nonprofit marketing and fundraising, while connecting hearts and hands to the mission. She believes that everyone can make a difference in the foster care crisis and considers it a joy to invite others to be a part of it in a meaningful way. Danika lives in Central Indiana with her husband, their daughter adopted through foster care, and the family goldendoodle.
Julianna has been on staff with Foster the Family since March of 2021. She has volunteered at her church in various administrative areas and has had a long-time desire to work in ministry full time. Julianna loves that she can use her administrative gifting and event planning to serve the broader mission of Foster the Family.
Melanie has a special place in her heart for this community of foster, adoptive and kinship families, having adopted her daughter from China almost 22 years ago. She is a widow, having lost her dear husband 4 years ago, and in a season of change, received her master’s degree in counseling through Liberty University. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her daughter and her lab, Java, going to the beach, streaming British crime dramas, and photography!
Jana and her husband, Bryce, live in Indianapolis on a small homestead with six children: two through birth, three adopted from foster care, and a current foster placement. Over the past twelve years with a foster license, Bryce and Jana welcomed more than thirty children into their home. She knows firsthand what it feels like not to have support and also the incredible difference support can make and is passionate about encouraging foster and adoptive mothers. As a family, the Langebartels strive to live out 2 Cor. 5:13-15: Jesus' love compels us to forgo a comfortable life because no sacrifice is too big for a God who loves us that much.
Kayla is passionate about keeping siblings together, encouraging foster and adoptive parents, and challenging the harmful stigmas that are often said about the foster care community. She especially finds fulfillment when teaching and training parents to find successful ways to navigate the challenges of parenting children from trauma and hard places, and reminding fellow foster and adoptive mamas that they are not alone.In her early days of foster parenting, Kayla felt lonely and inadequately prepared. After hearing about TBRI, which focuses on attachment-based, trauma-informed interventions and interactions with children from hard places, Kayla became a TBRI Practitioner to help not only herself and her children at home, but others walking through the same hardships.Kayla has a Master of Arts in English and Creative Writing. She is the wife of her middle-school sweetheart, Jerad, and the mama to her 5 beautiful children. She lives with her family in Charlotte, NC. Her days are spent trying to make her family laugh, as it is her favorite sound on earth.
Jillian and her family live in Baltimore City. She and her husband Tim have been resource parents licensed through Washington County Maryland since 2019. Jillian loves that the community of Foster the Family ensures that families aren't fostering alone and loves walking alongside families through the highs and lows of foster care, and making sure vulnerable children are seen and valued by getting the resources they need and deserve! She has a background in project management, communications, and marketing.
Annie has been passionate about serving children and families through foster care since she was a child. Being raised by parents who fostered, her early experiences shaped her commitment to providing encouragement and support to foster families. She pursued a degree in Human Development and Family Science and became a foster home coordinator for the State of Delaware. After transitioning away from that position to be a stay-at-home mom, Annie and her husband, Blake, became foster parents in 2008. They now live in Maryland and have five children: three by birth, one adopted through foster care, and one currently in foster care.
Barry is a foster parent and adoptive dad of 3 children who deeply cares about foster care support because he believes every child deserves stability, love, and a nurturing environment to thrive. He also believes that creating a strong support network providing ongoing encouragement is crucial to helping foster parents feel empowered and connected. Barry owned and operated a small martial arts school in Haddonfield, NJ, where he developed strong leadership and business management skills while fostering a passion for teaching and community engagement. He served as a full-time pastor, before returning to his family’s martial arts business at Garaguso Karate in Williamstown, NJ.
Through the 10 years of being a licensed foster mom, Jesse cared for more than 50 precious children, and 2 of them have stayed forever alongside 3 biological siblings. Quickly in this journey, however, she found that she had no support and knew no one in similar situations, and it became one of the loneliest seasons of her life. Because of her own experiences, she is passionate about connecting moms together, fostering a sense of community within the counties served, and providing personal, authentic relationships with other moms to provide them with tangible encouragement and support. Prior to working at Foster the Family, she was a full time stay at home mom, or as she likes to label it – a domestic engineer.
Kiarra has worked with children in various capacities for several years but was unaware of the unique challenges faced by children in foster care. During her undergraduate studies, she took a class that opened her eyes to both the beauty and brokenness of the system and immediately felt compelled to get involved. She is passionate about Trauma-Informed Care, special needs advocacy, and supporting families from a holistic perspective. She desires to help equip the local church and community to engage in foster care support intentionally and effectively.
Kiarra recently completed her master’s degree in Community Development and is grateful to apply that knowledge to her role.
Kim lives in Herndon, VA with her husband and two kids where they have been fostering since 2015. After becoming temporary guardians of a relative early in their marriage, they grew a desire to make foster care a part of their story. Kim has worked in various church ministries, an after-school program in DC, and has volunteered much of her time working with various vulnerable populations, including her local police department’s victim service unit. When not working, you can find her cheering her kids on at baseball games and ballet performances, painting, or gardening. She is also an active member of Grace Hill Church where her husband, Allan, is Lead Pastor.
Tricia is native to the Washington DC area where she lives with her husband and three kids. She worked in special education before becoming a stay-at-home mom after the adoption of their third child. Their family has been fostering for the last several years and has had the privilege of caring for several children and their families. She's passionate about supporting foster families so they can provide the best support for the children and families they care for.
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Janel is incredibly passionate about serving marginalized and vulnerable communities in her area. Biblically and ethically, she believes in the duty to support those in dire straits and strives to be apart of the solution by supporting foster parents, families, children, and kin. In her personal life, Janel, her husband, and their three children are actively involved in homeless outreach. They believe that changing how youth view and address socioeconomic issues will create a more compassionate and supportive community. Janel is currently double majoring in Sociology and Psychology at UMGC and has nearly a decade of hands-on volunteer experience.
Mandi and her husband were foster parents for 8 years. She has two daughters who were adopted from foster care and two sons who are currently in the process of being adopted. She has fostered 15 other children who reunified with their biological families. When she first started, she did not know anyone who had fostered or adopted. Though her family felt called to foster care, she also felt very alone in our journey, spending years forming a small community. She is passionate about making sure others have a support system of fellow foster/adoptive parents from the very beginning so they can share in the struggles and joys that are unique to foster care and adoption.
Karen is extremely passionate about working with marginalized families and has a passion for building community support and awareness. She recently graduated with her Bachelor’s Degree in Family Science from the University of Maryland and hopes to pursue her Master’s in Social Work soon. Karen has a passion for working with children and has spent her time working as a gymnastics coach and being a part-time nanny. Her dedication to and love for children and their well-being has led her to understand just how much support and care foster families need, especially those within the DMV. She hopes that her work will make a positive impact on the world of foster care.
Melanie and her husband, Doug live in Manassas, VA, and have been foster parents for about 9 years. She co-leads the Foster the Family support group in Prince William/Fauquier County and organizes the new stockroom there. Melanie is thrilled to be working with Foster the Family DC in supporting other foster/adoptive/kinship parents and the kids they serve. She believes everyone can do something to serve. Melanie loves reading aloud to her kids, animals of all kinds, and trying to convince her teens that her music is better.
Angela is a Florida native where she lives with her husband and four children. Their family has been a licensed foster family since 2019. Angela has a Masters in Nonprofit Management and over 10 years’ experience working with nonprofit organizations. She loves spending time fixing up her 115-year-old historic home and going to the beach every weekend.
Becca Beavers is a teacher, former foster parent and mother to four DC natives. Arriving in DC with plans to get a master’s degree and leave, by God’s grace she has now been here long enough to watch the Nationals win a World Series. As a teacher and foster parent, Becca has learned how to collaborate across differences and build toward community. Becca always has a book in her bag and another on her nightstand, will always say yes to another cup of coffee and loves to chase her rowdy bunch through National Parks.
Erin is native to Central Maryland and lives in Catonsville, MD with her husband, Dave. They have been married for 15 years and have five sons and one daughter. Before all of the children entered their life, Erin was a foster care social worker with an MSW from University of Maryland, Baltimore. She is passionate about working with children and families from hard places. Erin feels that her experience as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) and an outpatient mental health clinician has equipped her to provide wrap around services to children and families.
Melanie has a special place in her heart for this community of foster, adoptive and kinship families, having adopted her daughter from China almost 22 years ago. She is a widow, having lost her dear husband 4 years ago, and in a season of change, received her master’s degree in counseling through Liberty University. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her daughter and her lab, Java, going to the beach, streaming British crime dramas, and photography!
Jillian and her family live in Baltimore City. She and her husband Tim have been resource parents licensed through Washington County Maryland since 2019. Jillian loves that the community of Foster the Family ensures that families aren't fostering alone and loves walking alongside families through the highs and lows of foster care, and making sure vulnerable children are seen and valued by getting the resources they need and deserve! She has a background in project management, communications, and marketing.
Kristen grew up in Vermont but has planted roots in Maryland. She and her husband Brian have four crazy, wonderful children at home — some biological, some adopted. Her family is a quilt of unique pieces bound together through hurting and healing. She has her degree in education from Union University in TN. She loved teaching before becoming a full time homemaker and mama 13 years ago. Kristen was a Court Appointed Special Advocate [CASA]. She and her husband fostered more than a dozen children separated at the US border. Her mission is to make others feel safe and welcome. She is excited to use her gifts to support families in every facet of foster care.Kristen loves to travel to far away places. But, there's no place like home where there's always a renovation project, a good book to read or something delicious waiting to be baked.
With over 12 years in foster and adoption ministries through the local church, Heather is passionate about supporting foster families and collaborating with existing resources. She believes every child deserves a stable, loving environment, and foster families are essential in this process.
Heather's goal is to help families thrive, not just survive, by addressing burnout and creating supportive solutions. Her lived experience has shown her the challenges and transformative moments that come with proper support.
Heather comes to this role with many years of non-profit experience, most recently as executive director of a West Michigan nonprofit.
Jess lives in Grand Rapids, MI and has been a foster and adoptive mom for 7 years. She has two daughters and one son through adoption. Jess is passionate about advocating for the vulnerable and bringing support to foster and adoptive families. Her favorite things include beach days, caffeine, and snuggling babies.
Faye Veltman has been working in the nonprofit world for over 20 years planning and executing events. She has a passion for creating an experience for those that attend her events that make them want to come back again and again. She has a special place in her heart for kids in the foster care system and is so excited that she will be able to support and build up foster families in her new position with Foster the Family.When not working, Faye is a mom to 3 energetic homeschooled kids ages 14, 13, and 10. The Veltman family has a small hobby farm where they like to grow some of their own food and have a small zoo with chickens, rabbits, pigs, cats and a dog.
I'm a wife, a mom of five, a foster care case manager, and a passionate advocate for foster care. I enjoy reading, camping with my family, and beach days!
As a foster/adoptive mom, I understand the importance of respite for foster families and being surrounded by people who just “get it.” It truly takes a village.
I am so excited and feel blessed to be the Respite Coordinator for Foster the Family GR. I’m looking forward to the opportunities to allow families the break they deserve, while also making sure they feel confident and comfortable that their kids are in safe hands with a team who is equipped to meet the needs of the children and also give the children a fun time to just be a kid!
Kim and her family have lived in Florida since 2015. They now call Bradenton, FL their home. She and her husband married in 2011 and have 8 beautiful children. They have been doing both traditional and medical foster care since 2018. In that time, they adopted through medical foster care, adding to their growing family. Kim has a heart for advocating for children and surrounding those that care for them with all the support that they need. Most of all, she loves Jesus and knows that caring for children in need is what she has been called to do.
Dawn and her husband have a blended family with 6 children and 3 grandchildren. She was born and raised in Grand Rapids, Michigan and moved to Florida about 2 years ago. Dawn has been blessed to adopt her youngest son through a kinship adoption and is grateful for the Foster and Adoptive community who have surrounded her family with love and support as they transitioned to a new state. It is her desire to share with other families on this journey. It is not easy, but with love and supports from others, it can be beautiful.
Mariah Ramos is a growth expert specializing in scaling early-stage startups with disruptive technology. She has launched and commercialized new tech with sustainable scaling strategies, like the first portable EV charger. Before moving back to Florida, she served as Chief Growth Officer for a venture-backed startup in workforce development in Buffalo, NY, helping disadvantaged community members enter construction careers. After living in Buffalo and Boston post-college, she's passionate about serving the community in Pinellas and Pasco County. Outside of work, she's actively volunteering at church or on the water with her dog, Blue.
Whitney grew up in Bradenton, Florida. She and her husband have been married since 2014. They have 2 children 7 and 4 years old. They were foster parents for 2 years and helped reunify 2 children with family. Whitney has a heart for advocating for children and foster families. She is passionate about raising awareness of the needs of foster families and getting the local community involved.
Karen is the mother of eight children; three biological and five adopted. Karen and her husband, Trevor, were foster parents from 2011 until 2021. In that time they fostered over 70 children. Karen and Trevor have a tremendous love for, not only children, but the very structure of a family, which starts with marriage. Their relationship with God and each other provides the basis for their healthy marriage and their ability to provide a loving home for so many children.
Karen has many years of experience with Foster the Family, she has been a volunteer since the beginning, serving as a support to Jamie Finn and other foster parents. While in New Jersey, she volunteered many hours delivering packages, mentoring, and speaking at the foster parent trainings.
In 2021, Karen and her family relocated to Florida. A good portion of her life has continued to center around supporting, equipping, and encouraging families. She has a passion to support foster moms and to provide insight and perspective to be able to overcome the obstacles that come with parenting foster and adoptive children.