"Foster parenting is not for the faint of heart! Having a good parent partner can make the fostering experience far less stressful and much more manageable.

I’ve been involved in fostering for over 20 years and I’ve gone through A LOT of parent partners! NONE of them were as knowledgeable or valuable as Jennifer Messer.

Jennifer has been a foster parent. She has worked with social workers, foster parents, and kids, and she knows the venting, fears, frustration that comes with fostering. She knows the heartbreak of foster parents thinking they can’t continue. She doesn’t judge and she gives you a safe place to talk through your feelings.

The adoption journey with my son was the most stressful situation I’ve had as a foster parent. There were days I swore I just wanted to walk away. But, Jennifer was my rock. She gave me permission to feel scared, betrayed, angry, and confused. And she stood by me, supportive of whatever I decided. She listened, and she heard me, and when needed, she defended me.

As I’ve said, Parent Partners have come before and after her, but none ever lasted long, and none were particularly helpful. Some were judgmental, some spent the entire time talking about their own situation, and some were simply never available. Jennifer was truly invested in me and my situation. She found relevant topics to discuss and often came up with creative ways to help my son and I. She was also the one who figured out the reason he spiraled every fall.

My son has been with me for 6 years and 4 months now and we just got our court date to finalize this November.

This day came as a direct result of Jennifer’s skills as a parent partner. She truly is the best of the best and my family and I will be forever greatful for her."