50 Quotes That Demonstrate the Importance of Foster Care

Foster care plays a crucial role in providing love and support in the life of a child or teen who needs it most. 

However, it can be hard to see the real impact it has on lives without hearing from people who provide care and from individuals who have received it. These real experiences highlight the challenges faced, the growth experienced, and the bonds formed. 

These shared reflections can also teach us about compassion, resilience, and the power of making a difference. 

Let’s look at quotes that show the importance of foster care from inspired foster parents and individuals who have been in care.

Quotes on the Enduring Impact of Foster Care

• "You might be temporary in their lives; they might be temporary in yours. But there is nothing temporary about the love or the lesson." - Tonia Christle
• "Children born to another woman call me ‘mom.’ The magnitude of that tragedy and the depth of that privilege are not lost on me." - Jody Landers
• "Families don’t have to match. You don’t have to look like someone else to love them." – Leigh Anne Tuohy
• "Somehow, destiny comes into play. These children end up with you, and you end up with them. It’s something quite magical." - Nicole Kidman

Quotes on the Impact of Loving Parents

• "Thank you for telling me fairy tales, but also for teaching me how to face the battle I'd need to win in real life." - C.J. Redwine
• "I am empowered and thankful for my parents’ love and support." - Amy Leigh Mercree.
• "My parents are my backbone. Still are. They're the only group that will support you if you score zero or you score 40." - Kobe Bryant
• "My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person; he believed in me." - Jim Valvano
• “All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my mother.” - Abraham Lincoln

Quotes With Encouragement For Foster Parents

• "It’s not what happens to you, but how you react that matters." – Epictetus
• "Life is a long lesson in humility." - James M. Barrie
• "Moms are not perfect — we are being perfected." - Sue Detweiler
• "The way we talk to our children becomes their inner voice." - Peggy O’Mara
• "There is no single formula. This is not easy. But you’re not alone." - Unknown
• "Kindness can transform someone’s dark moment with a blaze of light. You’ll never know how much your caring matters." - Amy Leigh Mercree
• "Anyone who does anything to help a child in his life is a hero." - Fred Rogers
• "What makes a good father? A good father sets an example that his children want to follow. A good father provides for the needs of his children — both material and non-material. A good father demonstrates his love in both words and actions. A good father provides guidance in a positive fashion." - Rob Kozak
• "The moment when I am most repelled by a child’s behavior, that is my sign to draw the very closest to that child." - Ann Voskamp
• "The Golden Rule of Parenting is do unto your children as you wish your parents had done unto you!" - Louise Hart
• “You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” - Christopher Robin
• "If you've never been hated by your child, you've never been a parent." - Bette Davis

Quotes on Advocacy

• "If there’s a cause worth fighting for, it’s this: children belong in families." - Nicole Skellenger
• "It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” - Frederick Douglass
• "Every child deserves a champion — an adult who will never give up on them, who understands the power of connection and insists that they become the best they can possibly be." – Rita F. Pierson
• "Make a commitment to serve the needs of the ‘least of these’ and give voice to the voiceless." - Artika Tyner
• "Safety and security don't just happen. They are the result of collective consensus and public investment. We owe our children, the most vulnerable citizens in our society, a life free of violence and fear." - Nelson Mandela

Quotes on Making a Difference

• "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek." - Barack Obama
• "Every child is one caring adult away from being a success story." - Josh Shipp
• "Be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi
• "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead
• "Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the single candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." - Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai
• "Love is an expression of power. We can use it to transform our world." - Ericka Huggins

Quotes About the Essence of Fostering

• "Fostering is not about us. It never was and never will be. Foster care is about serving, loving on others, and being the one constant in a child’s life when they are going through a really hard time." - Jeremy Garman
• "Parenthood requires love, not DNA." - Unknown
• "Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work." - Dr. John Trainer
• "The goal is to see the precious child that exists beneath the survival strategies and to let them know that we see them." - Dr. Karyn Purvis
• "The home is a special place. It’s where relationships are forged, it’s where real life happens, and it’s where character is carefully chiseled."- Selena Frederick
• "The greatest gift a parent can give a child is self-confidence." - Stewart Stafford
• "Give me a firm place to stand, and I will move the earth." - Archimedes
• "What makes you a man is not the ability to make a child; it’s the courage to raise one." - Barack Obama
• "No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness, and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure."- Emma Goldman
• "The greatest gifts we can give our children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence." - Maria Montessori
• "Don't stand unmoving outside the door of a crying baby whose only desire is to touch you. Go to your baby. Go to your baby a million times. Demonstrate that people can be trusted, that the environment can be trusted, that we live in a benign universe." - Peggy O'Mara

Quotes From Our Mentor Foster Care Parents

• "I became a foster parent to give a child all the love and support that I can give and to be there for them no matter what. Every child needs a place to call home with love, care, and support." - Meunannlatay "Ann" Crawley, PA
• "Being a foster parent for me goes beyond just helping an individual child. Foster parents help fight the problems of homelessness, substance abuse, mental health, and poverty. I have always wanted to make a positive impact on a child and our community." - Robin McCoy, AL
• "I want to be a positive male role model and help young men become self-sufficient." - Charlie Parker, PA
• "We want to give children a chance to have a home environment while they are waiting to be reunited with their family. We enjoy helping children in need of a family atmosphere and providing them with support and love." - Nicole & Perry Jamison, AL
• "I became a Mentor foster parent because I love kids. I want to support and house a child who needs care and love, be a parent figure, and continue to walk in my mom's footsteps because she was a former foster parent." - Shelita Ellis, MD
• "My why for being a foster parent is a desire to make a positive impact on all the children placed in my care. As a teacher, I've had first-hand experience with children who have been brought into care and the impact of being placed in a good foster home versus a child having a negative experience in care. I want to be part of the village that teaches the children how to connect and love in the absence of their parents." - Kari Stephens, GA
• "Becoming a foster parent is an amazing way to give back to a child and make a real difference in their lives and ours. We have loved the opportunity to see our kids come out of their shells and become part of our family. It is nice to know we can provide them with a safe, stable home life, even if it’s just for a short time. The new year is the best time to start because there is a process and training to complete, and starting at the beginning of the year ensures you are giving a child a loving home by the end of the year." - Brenda & Jason Watchorn, OH

Read More Heartfelt Quotes From Real Foster Parents

If you enjoyed these quotes, you'll love hearing from real foster parents.

Get a sneak peek into the world of fostering with Letters Written with Love, a collection of letters from foster parents to the children in their care.

Get your free copy and experience the love, hope, and joy of foster parents who have been there!