Talking Foster Care this Saturday on WYCC

According to childrensrights.org there are approximately 397,000 children that are involved in foster care in the United States alone.  On a personal level, my family has been involved in the foster care system.  I recently traveled back to my roots to visit two young boys that my parents welcomed into our home.  I instantly fell in love and saw first hand what the foster care system does to benefit children like them.

 As children of unfortunate events or broken homes, foster care provides them with loving families.  Typically a child is in foster care for two years before they are adopted.  As many people might think that it is more common for young children to be involved in the system, the most common ages range from 9 years old and up.

This Saturday Steve Pemberton, a success story of foster care, speaks to us about overcoming the odds. As a child impacted by foster care, Steve is now the Chief Diversity Officer and Divisional Vice-President for Walgreens.  He has taken his past experiences from the system and throughout times of overcoming differences to write his memoir-A Chance In The World: An Orphan Boy, a Mysterious Past, and How He Found a Place Called Home.

 Steve has helped a Chicago run organization, called UCAN, in terms of being an inspiration to teens who have suffered from past traumas.  UCAN's message is to empower youth that has suffered in the past and help them become the future leaders of our world.  We learn more about UCAN and the personal story behind the organizations President and Chief Operating Officer, Zach Schrantz and Chief Executive Officer-Thomas C. Vanden Berk.

Our list of guests continue with singer and musician Michael McDermott.  Author Stephen King calls Michael "One of the best songwriters in the world."  We have him on the show featuring one of his songs "Lift Up Your Heart" written for foster care.

Make sure to watch this Saturday May 24th on WYCC PBS Chicago at 4 PM.