Former Gateway foster youth Tracy Haynes said it best: "I graduated when I didn't think I could.  It took my foster parents to help me realize my untapped potential."  Haynes recently won Volunteer of the Year in Tallahassee and graduated from college, because someone like you chose to do an extraordinary thing: foster parent with Gateway.

Why our foster parents rock.

Gateway foster parents build Alabama children into strong, capable and contributing young adults.  They are game changers, leaders, role models and champions who never give up, because the children we serve deserve nothing less. Each foster parent is committed to providing the unwavering stability, security and unconditional love that it takes to unlock a child’s potential. This commitment extends to the child’s biological family when that is the child’s pathway to permanency.  The result is transformational, moving Alabama’s future leadership, workforce and communities forward.

What is therapeutic foster care?

Due to the negative impact family trauma, neglect or abuse has on a child's brain development, children in foster care need loving foster parents, specially trained to respond to their emotional and behavioral needs.  Gateway is the only agency in Alabama that trains our foster parents in the nation's leading trauma-informed safety model, as well as Trust Based Relational Intervention®.

Thanks to our foster parents' commitment to our kids and dedication to our training, we have seen record-breaking adoptions and positive outcomes for children in foster care.