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May 10, 2023 40 mins

"It's totally worth it", Amanda says when asked about the heartbreaking realities of fostering and adopting children with special needs and medical complexities. Amanda and Justin Sharp experienced many losses during their journey to parenthood, but the family they created, the sibling bond between their children, and the community in which they surround themselves makes it all worth it.  The second addition to our foster care awareness special series, Amanda answers the questions that are tough to ask about opening her home to fostering children with disabilities. How did she and her husband have faith in themselves and their agency to accept any call they would receive? How did they have the courage to reopen their doors after suffering the worst imaginable tragedy? What advice does she have for other families who might consider fostering a child with  special needs? 

 

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Learn about foster care and fostering children with disabilities: 
Specialized Family Care
Children's Home Society of West Virginia 

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Sponsored by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, Office of Maternal, Child, and Family Health/Children with Special Health Care Needs Program and the West Virginia Family 2 Family Health Information Center and Produced by the West Virginia University Center for Excellence in Disabilities.

 

 

If you have a story that you would like shared on the podcast, please send us an email at courtney.ringstaff@hsc.wvu.edu

 

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