Harvey couple Lynette and Ed have been fostering children in WA for more than 30 years. They faced problems but reaped the rewards of seeing a child in their care blossom and grow.
“We were living in the rather remote area of Dundas in the Goldfields in 1991 and we’ve been fostering on and off since then,” Lyn tells Have a Go News.
“We’ve had many children down the years, selling our Waroona farm three years ago and settling in Harvey. We’ve had around 27 children in our current home.”
Lyn estimates all up the couple, who have three grownup children of their own, have cared for about 1,000 children down the years.
“I would say it’s a good 1,000 because there were many children when we were living in a remote area who didn’t go through the system.
“If the police had a runaway picked up near the WA border, they would ask us if we could care for the child for a few nights. Sometimes we would have them for weeks or even several years until they got their act together.”
Lyn and Ed currently have two babies in their care.
“The little boy was six months old when we first received him and we were supposed to have him for eight weeks; he’s now 16 months.
“We also have a baby girl born 11 weeks’ premature and we got her straight from hospital at four weeks old and she is now eight months old.”
Lyn says that the family always sat around the table and discussed taking on foster children and if the answer was “no” they didn’t go ahead.
“My daughter was wonderful because when she turned 15 she would collect the littlies from day care while Ed and I were both working.”
What has motivated the couple, now in their late 60s and early 70s, to do what they did?
“We took foster children into our lives and the rewards have been many. We are being somewhat selfish now because next year we want to travel and have asked the Department of Communities to find permanent homes for our two babies.”
Lyn says she didn’t really live with her parents as a child.
“My nana took me in even though I knew who my mum and dad were and I would return to them during the school holidays.
“My mother was a very violent person when I was younger, she didn’t drink or anything, she was just that way. I went on to marry and have three children and my mother was a very good nana. We always wanted more children but we couldn’t, so we turned to fostering.
“I couldn’t have done all this without Ed but we are ready to move on now and have time for us.”
Lyn says the couple are still in contact with a nine-year-old girl they had until she was about four.
“She was taken from us and she has had nine families since and also a group home.
“We pick her up and have her for the weekend.”
How do the couple survive financially?
“Babies grow rather quickly. We receive around $32 a day allowance but you have to buy formula, nappies and medication. The clothing allowance every four months is around $180.
“We have never done it for the money.”
Lyn says the many rewards of seeing the children bloom is epitomised with the baby boy they currently foster.
“He had a flat head due to neglect and to see him now crawling and walking is a joy. The baby girl is also doing well.
“It’s so rewarding when you see where these children have come from and where they are at now.
“When we go out, we have to co-ordinate. We also do this with late-night feeding, with each of us having a book in which we write down the start and finish time of feeding and things like that.”
In July this year Lyn informed the Department of Communities that the couple were planning to travel and asked the department to look at transitioning as they did not want the babies to go to strangers without any contact.
So far, nothing has happened.
Lyn has little time for hobbies but enjoys patch working and exercise, Ed has been involved in accounting and was treasurer of the Waroona Agricultural Society for 11 years.
The couple have booked a trip to Japan next year. There are plans to upgrade their car, buy a caravan and travel the country.
A reward for years of devotion and care of children who needed it.
For security reasons, Lyn and Ed’s surname has not been not published.