Book: There are no bad kids


There are No Bad Kids (Just Bad Parents)

By Chuck Slate

About The Book

This book was envisioned as a result of the author spending several years providing a home for kids who needed a home. There are many, many books written on the subject of "at risk" children and/or foster children. Most, if not all, are written by clinical psychologists or other 'people of learning' who believe they are child advocates. NOT THIS ONE!

Read a book which tells it like it really is! This one is written from the point of view of a foster Dad who has lived with and loved 54 different foster child placements. The thoughts and experiences are honest, straight from the shoulder with no 'sugar coating.' When the system is wrong, it is pointed out with no reservations. The conventional thinking is in drastic need of change and the handling of children has become a bureaucratic nightmare.

Introduction

This book was written from the heart of a foster father. That foster father would desperately hope that the United States society can return to the realization that a loving family is the most important ingredient in the raising of any child. I may, from time to time in this treatise, get off on a political tack. That is unavoidable when working in the foster care system because it is a government controlled program and as such, is political, regulative and bureaucratic. Since that is true, it is almost impossible to discuss foster care and leave politics completely out of it. The difference between a clinical approach to raising children and the real world is like night and day. I find that raising a foster child is approximate to raising my own birth children. True, foster children have been through a great deal that my children never had to go through but kids tend to be kids. If I had my way, as a foster parent, it would give me a great deal of satisfaction if it were possible to work myself out of a job!

Meet The Author

The author of this book, Chuck Slate was born in Connecticut. He was married to Marilyn in December of 1950. They will be celebrating their 50th anniversary in the year 2000. Neat, huh? Marilyn and Chuck have four birth children (three boys and a girl). The oldest is a boy born in 1951, the second is a girl born in 1953 and then there are twin boys born in 1959. All are doing well and have produced twelve grandchildren (they think; sometimes they lose track). The family moved several times because of Chuck's job. they have lived in Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina and Virginia. Marilyn and Chuck also spent six months in England on temporary assignment. They have visited several other foreign countries, as well.

Marilyn became an LPN when she was 43 years of age and is still working part time at that endeavor. Marilyn also has spent a great deal of her time volunteering for non-profit organizations. Chuck has retired three different times and has held jobs that range from dairy farming to electronic test design and many management positions. Since he last retired in 1991, Chuck has volunteered for a number of non-profit organizations including the American Red Cross, the American Cancer Society, Madison Emergency Services Association, Literacy Council of Madison County, the Culpeper Community Watch, Culpeper Court Watch, 1995 and 1996 Madison Flood Recovery Committee, etc. Chuck has started some of these organizations as President, has been on the Board of Directors of others, has been a social and financial mentor and has directed other organizations.

Since 1992, he and his wife Marilyn have been providing a home for foster children, sometimes taking in more than one at a time. At this writing, they currently care for their 53rd and 54th foster child placements. The first 47 placements were completely volunteer and the Slates received no stipend. Two years ago, they became long term, therapeutic foster parents. The Slates have built an excellent reputation within the foster care system in Virginia as 'tough but fair' in dealing not only with the children but with the myriad of social workers who are associated with each child.

Chuck and Marilyn still maintain an extremely busy volunteer schedule and their foster children are sometimes exposed to a number of meetings in a single day. It is a busy, busy family and hardly ever boring.

Chuck is also presently the Treasurer of the Virginia Foster Care Association (VFCA), a statewide Virginia organization dedicated to advocacy for the foster children and the foster parents. The organization is called Kidz-Together Everyone Achieves More (K-TEAM for short). One of Chuck's goals is to work with the VFCA to provide full four year scholarships to five foster children each year and to erect a camp in the Blue Ridge Mountains for foster children. This is obviously a long term goal since a great of financing will be needed.