"A child needs something that an adult can provide: love, affection, and care.
All these can be offered by a foster carer".
Lidia Sinighin, Foster Carer, Ungheni District.
The role of a foster carer implies much devotion. With two disabled children in placement, Mrs. Sinighin is a vivid proof showing that such professionals do exist. Her gesture is more than an act of courage – it’s a proof of altruism and self-denial for the sake of others.
The woman experienced dramatic moments. The loss of her own child made her understand life differently. This is why she accepted the two brothers the way they are, offering them the most valuable matter – her unconditioned love.
The foster parent says she was not afraid to take into placement two children with special needs; on the contrary, this determined her to make more efforts to make sure she could help them better.
When they came into Mrs. Sinighin’s home, children had speech difficulties, it was difficult for them to express their thoughts, which for some time was an obstacle for the foster carer. However, this period didn’t last long.
Mrs. Sinighin helped children to make a big step forward, by treating them with love, hugs, patience, and kindness. If in the beginning they could understand each other rather with signs and gestures of affection, now, due to the foster carer’s insistence and contribution, as well as due to the efforts of the teachers who worked with them, children are able to talk better and they can be understood without much effort and concentration.
Mrs. Sinighin says she is close to the children in all phases of their development, and she supports them even in the simplest efforts, encouraging them never to give up. She wants very much the two children to feel – and be in fact – just like all their peers.
"Obviously, nothing can be done without effort", says Mrs. Sinighin, - "but the results wouldn’t be the same without emotional involvement, without affection and a smile you offer them every day".
Thus, children reward the foster parent’s care and love with their progress.
She is very happy when children meet her with their arms wide spread and with happy smiles, when she or other family members (her husband and biological daughter) come back home from work or from shopping.
Even when we were in their home for the interview, they were discussing what they need to buy for the school. We found out that they were taught at school how to write correctly, and that they would have a support teacher in their school who would help them achieve better. The two siblings are very strongly attached to their foster family, even though they know that one day they’ll have to leave. It matters much for them to know that they are loved and to feel the warmth of a true family, to be able to attend community school, and to socialize with their peers. They are a family and they know that they will manage everything together.