There are two things you can do when life throws its worst at you – give up or survive. Against all odds, Kaitlyn Radauscher chose the latter; she graciously shared her foster care success story with us.
When she was 16 years old and a sophomore in high school, Kaitlyn lost her father to suicide. Devastated, she was unable to turn to her biological mother for the comfort and care she needed. She had to move out of her home and in with her aunt and uncle. It was then she became a foster child.
“When I first went into foster care, I wasn’t happy about it,” Kaitlyn says. “I never imagined my life to turn out the way it did. I was a little bitter inside because none of my friends had to deal with the same stuff I did.”
Despite the tragic change in her life, Kaitlyn continued to stay positive by surrounding herself with loved ones and continuing her routine of hanging out, going to work and attending school where she continued to excel.
Foster Care Success Story: Hard Work + Support = Achievement
While in college, Kaitlyn was on the Dean’s list every semester and was inducted into the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society. In her senior year in college, she was inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma International Honors Society – the highest recognition any business student can receive. By studying hard and staying organized with an agenda, she was able to stay on top of her assignments and be successful in her courses. After receiving her Associates Degree from Raritan Valley Community College, she graduated Magna Cum Laude from Rowan University’s Business School.
“When I first entered foster care, I would have never thought any of this was possible.”
How was all of this possible, though? Kaitlyn’s hard work, positive attitude, friends, family and all around resilience were certainly the driving forces to her triumph. In addition to that, Foster and Adoptive Family Services’ New Jersey Foster Care (NJFC) Scholars Program was pivotal to her academic success. It wasn’t out of the ordinary for her to receive a congratulatory email from her Scholarship Associate giving her kudos for such a successful semester. Through the NJFC Scholars Program, Kaitlyn has been able to receive financial support that helped move her towards her goal of graduating college. Not only that, she received encouragement that pushed her further than finances ever could.
“I hope kids in foster care continue to receive the support they need. I hope people become more aware about this and do something to help out, whether it’s small or big,” says Kaitlyn.
For information on the NJFC Scholars Program, or to find out how you can get involved, click here.
Foster Care Success Story: Don’t Give Up
Kaitlyn decided to major in finance when she saw how important and vital it was — and is — in today’s society. She is currently a Financial Analyst at Bloomberg LP, and she loves what she does.
When asked what advice she would give to foster kids, Kaitlyn said, “Don’t give up!” She wants all foster children to know that, even though it may seem like it, they are not alone. There will be success as long as they stay positive and move forward. Help is always there even though it may not come from where they expected it.
Foster kids have been fighting a stigma since the inception of foster care. They are not delinquent children who have done something to deserve their situations. If you ask Kaitlyn, foster kids are unique. “I wish ‘foster care’ and ‘foster child’ weren’t such scary words.” She believes that anyone who could survive such drastic changes and manage to make the best out of a traumatic situation should be commended.
Well we commend you, Kaitlyn. And we wish for your inspiring story to bring hope to that child who feels success is not possible; we also hope it will disprove the stigma of what foster care is perceived to be. Foster care can indeed create hope and productive citizens that make a difference – you’re the perfect example of that.