Over the past 15 years, it's impossible for Kathi Lowe to say exactly how many loads of laundry she's done, but she can recall the number of children she's cared for as a foster mom - well over 50.
When seven children and two adults are living in the same house, laundry must be done, carpets swept, meals prepared and chores completed every day.
"I have three college degrees but prefer to stay home and be a mom to my kids," said Lowe, of Little Hocking.
May is National Foster Care Month, a month set aside across the country to recognize people who provide temporary care, guidance, nurturing and security to children in their homes, according to Teri Wright, foster care/adoption supervisor with Washington County Children Services.
May is also a time to recognize the need for more foster homes.
The county currently has 20 foster care homes, but because there is a shortage, 12 children from 10 to 18 years old are being housed outside Washington County, Wright said.
"We need to keep our children here locally so that we can serve them," she said. "It's the county's responsibility to provide homes for them, and it is hard on kids to send them away from friends and family."
A big part of the mission of the agency is to secure more foster homes.
Kathi and David Lowe, the parents of two biological daughters and one adopted daughter, have been in the program nearly two decades. They came by it naturally.
"David's parents, Wilburt and Betty Lowe (of Porterfield), have been foster parents for years and still have two foster daughters," Kathi Lowe said. "We just grew up with it."
Children are placed in foster care due to economic, social, environmental or psychological factors in their family which causes their own parents to be unable to meet the child's needs, Wright said.
"Often these children develop their own way of coping with stress," she said. "They may display challenging behaviors during crisis in the biological family."
Like every child, a foster child needs love and security, Wright said.
"All foster children are negatively affected by the separation from their family," she said. "Sometimes they have a difficult time expressing their anxiety and they misbehave. Imagine losing your home, family and job all in one day."
These feelings can be experienced by a foster child every time the child is moved.
Foster homes are certified and foster parents trained and licensed. They receive reimbursement for each child to cover expenses, such as food, utilities and mileage for travel.
Children often get very close to their foster family.
"One of our foster boys still calls us 'mom and dad.' He is a freshman at Ohio State University and still comes home on break," Lowe said.
The couple adopted a foster daughter, Amanda, who is now an adult and lives in Columbus.
When the house is full of children, there isn't always a lot of time for the adults.
"Make sure you really have a strong marriage and a strong family unit before you get into fostering," Lowe said. "Everybody has to pitch in and help out."
For years, the couple refused to use the respite program that allows foster parents a bit of time to themselves on weekends.
"We learned to use respite a lot," Lowe said. "It gives us a chance to get away by ourselves and regroup, recharge. The break has really been helpful."
The couple is preparing to add onto their house.
"When you look at the economy, I think a lot of people are just afraid to take on extra, but we have seven foster children now and you should see this place on holidays," she said. "Everybody comes home."
The positive of foster parenting is seeing the kids become "children again," Lowe said.
"I love to see them playing, laughing, talking with one another at the table after school - about the things they are looking forward to," she said.
A trip to King's Island is planned this summer for the family.
"That's our big trip," Lowe said. "Some of these kids have never been to a place like that. We took them to the beach once and some had never seen the ocean or walked in the hot sand."
Melissa Lowe, 33, of Marietta, the couple's biological daughter, has also grown up with foster children in the house.
"When I was younger, my grandparents had all the kids. I was jealous," she said. "Later, I liked having foster kids here. Now one of them, Phillip, is a student at OSU and he spends breaks and vacations with me."
She has three children and her boyfriend, three teenagers, Melissa Lowe said.
"We're looking forward to adopting a child," she said.
Foster parenting has been a part of Lowell residents Konnie and Steve Yoho's lives for 11 years. Konnie Yoho is currently a mentor to other foster parents in the county. The couple has seven adult children between them.
"Sometimes they just need support," Yoho said. "I think people try to make it more complicated than it is."
What foster parenting means to Yoho is "a whole lot of joy," she said.
"It's challenging, but very rewarding," she said.
Washington County is actively seeking people to be foster parents, Wright said.
"Local foster homes are especially needed for teens and sibling groups," she said. "You may face challenges as a foster parent, but you will be forever changed by the experience. Our goal is to nurture these children so that they can thrive and grow into responsible and caring adults."
