When we talk about foster care, we often focus on placement numbers, case files, and timelines. But at its core, foster care is about something far more human: a child’s need for stability, belonging, and a permanent place to call home.

Across the country, too many children are waiting.

According to the National Council for Adoption, 30% of children who exited foster care in fiscal year 2024 spent more than two years in care. That represents 64,121 children and youth. Of those, approximately 35,000 spent three or more years waiting for permanency. These timelines far exceed the 12-month permanency guideline established under the Adoption and Safe Families Act, which was designed to prevent children from lingering in uncertainty.

Behind every statistic is a young person navigating school changes, shifting caregivers, and the emotional toll of instability. Research consistently shows that prolonged time in foster care without permanency can affect a child’s educational outcomes, mental health, and long-term well-being. Stability is not a luxury. It is foundational to healthy development.

At EMPOWER, the focus is not simply on placements. It is on people. The organization works to strengthen families, support caregivers, and create sustainable pathways to permanency so that children do not spend years waiting for stability. That means equipping foster and kinship families with practical resources, trauma-informed support, and community connections that allow them to remain committed for the long haul.

The broader conversation we must have as a community is this: permanency does not happen by accident. It requires coordinated effort, thoughtful policy, and neighbors willing to step forward. It requires us to ask not only how children enter care, but how we ensure they exit into safe, lasting, and supportive homes.

Care is more than a temporary response. It is a long-term commitment to stability.

And stability changes everything.