"Kinship care: A community alternative to foster care"

Abstract

I realized the importance of kinship connection and family preservation the first time I met one of my birth family members at age twelve. As an adopted child, I often felt I was living in a borrowed state of being. In someone else's family, borrowing someone else's name and culture. Meeting my birth family and recognizing my connection to the Metis community gave me a sense of belonging for the first time in my life.