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Everyday Heroes: Trudy Petkovich, Kids Hope United
One woman takes "if everyone would just take one child" to heart, by word and example
For Trudy Petkovich, supporting
foster parenting—as an advocate, event host, and mentor—is all in a
day’s work. It’s what Trudy accomplishes by way of example, however,
that makes her work with the Miami office of Kids Hope United, an
Alliance member headquartered in Chicago, something far beyond the
ordinary.
What makes Trudy’s story all the more interesting is the fact that
she is a foster and adoptive mother herself, a lifestyle decision
that was sparked from a comment made more than 15 years ago by her
biological son, John Jr.
“Our son remarked one day that if everyone would just take one
child, all the children would have a home,” Trudy says. But Trudy
didn’t stop with one child. During the past 16 years, Trudy and her
husband, John Sr., have fostered nearly 300 of South Florida’s most
vulnerable children. “Our son reminded us over the years, as we took
in more and more children, that his recommendation was just one,”
she jokes.
 Through
her experience as a foster parent, Trudy became increasingly
interested in Florida’s foster care and adoption systems and began
volunteering with the Department of Children and Families.
Eventually this work led her to Kids Hope United—which provides
prevention, intervention, and community-based services to vulnerable
children and families in Florida, Wisconsin, Illinois, and
Missouri—where she’s served as foster parent liaison for about two
and one-half years.
Trudy’s very first foster placement, an 18-month-old girl named
Katherine, later became her first adopted daughter. A few years
later, Trudy and John Sr. adopted another child, a baby girl named
Deborah, who came to them as a drug-exposed newborn when she was 15
days old. Most recently, in 2005, they adopted Molly, who first came
to the foster family as a tiny, 4.5-pound premature baby.
“I would say what keeps me going is my faith,” Trudy says. “I
believe this is the path that God had for me, my husband, and our
children. We have always done this as a family.”
Although John Sr. passed away in 2006, Trudy is still active in the
foster care system. She continues to care for an 18-month-old baby
who arrived at her home the week before John's death, something she
says she could not do without the daily hands-on support that she
receives from her two adult birth children. “Their first commitment
is to the difference we all can make in the lives of these
children,” she says of John Jr. and her daughter, Amy Lynn.
“Since my husband died 18 months ago, I realize what a big
commitment he made to this, and I realize that I am no longer able
to continue keeping foster children. The baby that came the week
before he died will be my last, as she moves on to be adopted soon,”
Trudy says. “I could not have done this on my own. It has taken the
four of us to make the impact on the lives of these children.”
There was a time when Trudy’s home was bursting with so many babies
in need that one observant former foster daughter concluded that
“Aunt Trudy’s house” was the answer to the famous inquisition:
“Where do babies come from?” Although her ability to continue
providing direct foster-care service has subsided, Trudy’s work as
foster parent liaison will continue with Kids Hope United. And her
experience as a foster and adoptive mother will no doubt continue to
prove invaluable for those she touches through the organization.
“Foster parents have an extremely tough job, and Trudy is there for
them day in and day out,” says Marlin Livingston, executive director
of Kids Hope United. “She is their support system, mentor, and
friend. Her dedication to our foster parents and the children in
their care is nothing short of extraordinary.”
 As a Kids Hope United employee, Trudy supports the organization's
foster care program in several ways. She helps increase the pool of
interested foster and adoptive parents by tirelessly networking
during events, volunteers for an assortment of projects such as
supplying holiday gifts, coordinates the agency’s clothing closet
for children, and publishes a monthly newsletter for all Kids Hope
United caregivers.
“The whole life experience has made me the advocate that I am. I
live what these children go through,” Trudy says. “They need to have
stability in their lives, so I must promote foster care and the need
for good foster parents. I also have a heart for adoption, and I
know how important it is for children who cannot return home to have
a forever family.”
As time pushes Trudy close to 20 years of serving the needs of
foster children in South Florida, she’s collected plenty of stories
from the experience. Some still break her heart. Others are
uplifting, hopeful, and inspiring.
She tells of the extended family she’s developed as she’s remained
in contact with many of her former foster children and their
parents, becoming for some a mother figure, a grandmother figure for
others, or an aunt. She tells of successful reunifications between
children and their parents—and sometimes those that didn’t remain
stable. Regardless, for every situation in which a former foster
child has triumphed despite their family circumstances, she’s proud.
“Foster care and adoption can be the most rewarding things you do
with your life. The community of families who foster and/or adopt, I
believe, are some of the greatest people in the world. Not everyone
understands why we foster children who are not our own, let alone
adopt these children. This is something we have a heart and a
commitment to do.”
But not everyone is cut out to become a foster parent, Trudy
acknowledges, and that’s OK. “For those who cannot take the children
into their own homes, do the next best thing: support these families
with your time, resources, and finances.”
To learn more about Kids Hope United, visit the organization's
Web site.
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