‘STEM 4 Them’ gives pressure-free alternative for adoptive parents and foster kids

 

STEVENSVILLE, Mich.-- After the age of six, 85 percent of foster kids will never get adopted. That means every year in the United States, 23,000 children age out of the foster care system.  

One organization in Berrien County seeks to help close this gap and match foster children with their forever homes. This week, the nonprofit “STEM 4 Them” is hosting its summer camp for its 5th year at Lakeside Family Church in Stevensville.    

Founder Renee Peddie says foster children sometimes leave traditional adoption events with harsh feelings of rejection. Those heartbreaking thoughts of rejection felt by these kids led her to start "STEM 4 Them," creating fun events for foster kids and prospective parents completely pressure free.  

“For the kids that come to our events, they’re coming to a fun thing where they’re learning life skills, they’re getting career exposure, they’re communicating, collaborating, innovating, all these amazing things,” Peddie said. “And what they don’t know, ideally, is that embedded in our programs are prospective parents or people that have contemplated adoption at one point or another.”    

Peddie said as a schoolteacher, she saw the positive impact STEM—science, technology, engineering and math—had on her students, even those considered “at-risk.” She wanted to find a way to incorporate that curriculum while working with foster children.  

What makes it unique is the chance for prospective parents to interact as camp volunteers in order to form relationships with the foster children.  

That way, the parents and children can form bonds completely pressure free before any kind of adoption process starts.    

One mother, Becky Mullikin-Davis, found her kids at “STEM 4 Them.”  

 “We had no idea that we were going to meet our forever family here,” she said. “We didn’t have any kids at all, we’d been married for about a decade, and when we found out that the two kiddos we wanted to adopt were available, it was a done deal. It took us a whole whopping 5 minutes to decide we wanted to move forward.”

Outside of the yearly summer camp, “STEM 4 Them” does events regularly, typically the third Saturday of every month.  

They are hoping to expand this model nationally.  

To learn more, visit stem4them.life