Phyllis DiNardi

Almost 20 years ago, I saw an article in the newspaper for a CASA, which is a Court Appointed Special Advocate that advocates for children in foster care to make sure they're going in the right direction and their needs are being met. I was a CASA for about 5 years for 3 different children, including one with special needs and a 12-year-old boy who had been in the foster care system since he was 3, in 17 different homes with 3 failed adoptions. After having to tell the judge he had to be placed in his 18th home, I texted my husband and said we're becoming foster parents. We fostered a total of 49 kids, mostly older kids and teens, while raising my 6 own children. I also owned a preschool for 9 years. I love kids, especially quirky kids who give me a little bit of a tough time - I like to use humor to get where I need to be with them instead of being harsh. When my husband and I moved into an adult community 5 years ago, we could no longer foster, but we knew these kids had great potential and we saw it because they did well and were very successful. I wasn't giving up on them, so I started my nonprofit called We Are Loved. We do comfort bags for police departments, holiday boxes, and birthday boxes for kids in foster care. Since we started just before COVID hit, I handle pretty much all the responsibilities, though we're finally growing to have volunteers where I can hand things off. My days involve answering emails, getting supplies and donations together, organizing what's going on where, and doing talks about the nonprofit and what kind of support and help we need in the community we serve.