From age 12, Logan longed to be with family. Now he has one.
Just before the holidays, Logan* packed up all of his belongings, loading them Tetris-style into the trunk of his caseworker’s car at the Department of Children and Families (DCF). The 90-minute drive from his foster home tohis sister’s house felt different from the 40 other car rides the 15-year-old had taken over the last four years. This wasn’t a visit. There was no return trip scheduled. As he watched the familiar miles slip into the rearview, Logan expressed his relief. At the end of this journey, his sister Deborah* and her partner—and his young niece and nephew—were waiting excitedly to welcome him home.
“I HAVE NO ONE.”
When Logan was 12, he told his social worker, Tanner Lowe, in DCF’s adoption unit, “I have no one.” The answer didn’t sit well with Tanner, and it’s one that The Home flatly rejects. Ten years ago, The Home created the Youth Permanency Connections (YPC) program, a dedicated team who work alongside young people involved with DCF to identify caring adults, past or present; strengthen existing bonds; and prepare youth and families for lasting reunification or permanent kinship placement.
Adoption was the goal for Logan, though at first, he wasn’t sure he wanted it. Fiercely loyal, he longed to be with his mom, but her struggles with substance use, homelessness and significant trauma made returning to her care impossible. A “family find” revealed that Logan had four older sisters, all of whom had been adopted and were living in the area, and our YPC team was enlisted to work their magic.
SISTER ACT
“When The Home got involved, everything changed,” says Deborah. Permanency Social Worker Scott Dunbar took the lead, organizing outings like bowling, axe throwing and bumper boats to reunite Logan with his siblings and explore permanency. Deborah hadn’t seen Logan since he was eight, but she knew immediately she’d take him in if she could.
Gradually, the visits shifted solely to Deborah, who was warm and maternal, and her partner, with whom Logan had formed an instant bond, as they built a young family of their own. Scott would watch their baby girl to give them time together. “He was like our fun uncle,” Deborah laughs.
Every two weeks for nearly two years, Scott drove Logan to be with them, and they’d fish, play video games or head to the lake. Logan joined them for Thanksgiving, Christmas and all the important occasions, like baby showers. “Logan met his niece and nephew when they were teeny-tiny,” shares Deborah. Despite his resistance, “I made him hold them. I was like, ‘Listen, if you’re going to be moving in, you’re going to hold the baby.’”
PATIENCE REWARDED
To make Logan’s move possible, Deborah and her family relocated to an apartment in New Hampshire. “I knew he wasn’t going to get adopted,” says Deborah, with candor and concern. “He’s too old—I was that old, too, and only got adopted because my adoptive parents fell in love with my four-year-old sister. The next step for Logan would’ve been a group home, and I didn’t want that for him.” She wanted the love, laughter and chaos of a tight-knit family for him; a niece and nephew who light up when he enters the room, gleefully shouting, “Uncle! Uncle!” and the chance to relax and just be a kid. He wanted it too.
The transition, with its home approval codes, brought a new set of hurdles, and the process took a year longer than anticipated. Still, Logan was patient as he waited for the moment to arrive. Scott gives all credit to Logan for the way he carried himself. “He’s such a good kid, and he really wanted a relationship with his family.”
So much of Logan’s life had been spent waiting, hoping and in transit. Now, he’s excited for what comes next. He told Tanner, “Living with—and being adopted by—my sister feels like the real beginning of the rest of my life.” It’s been a long time coming, but it’s finally here.
*Names have been changed for privacy.
