The case in summary: • The Norwegian Foster Home Association has noticed increased attention and inquiries following Raad’s call.• Influencer Isabel Raad was earlier this summer reunited with her foster family after 12 years and encouraged her followers to become foster parents.• Raad, who has over 360,000 followers on Snapchat , has been open about her difficult childhood and the importance of the foster family she lived with for six years.• Secretary General of the Norwegian Foster Home Association, Tone Granaas, states that we are living in a foster home crisis with between 200-300 children waiting for a safe home.• Bufdir , who works with foster home recruitment, praises Raad’s initiative and works to strengthen the foster home message to recruit and retain more foster homes.• Raad says she wants to use her voice even more regarding foster care, a topic close to her heart. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – We have received lots of inquiries from people who thought the invitation to Isabel Raad was absolutely fantastic. That’s what Secretary General Tone Granaas of the Norwegian Foster Home Association says. It is one of the organizations that has noticed increased attention following influencer Isabel Raad’s foster home appeal earlier this summer. Through several video clips, hundreds of thousands of followers witnessed the surprise visit to her foster family. Twelve years had passed since they had last seen each other. Raad has always been open about her difficult childhood, and that the foster family she lived with for six years meant a lot. In just a few years, Isabel Raad has become one of Norway’s biggest influencers. On Snapchat alone, she has over 360,000 followers, and is constantly referred to as Norway’s Snapchat queen. Shortly after the reunion visit at the beginning of August, she urged all her followers to become foster parents: – Please, please do it, said Isabel Raad when she made her request. Video: Isabel Raad Raad writes in an e-mail to news that she is touched that her involvement in this case is seen and received so positively. – I know myself how enormously important it is to have good foster homes. I am quite sure that growing up in a safe and nice home saved me in many ways. Made the choice Carina Gauslå from Froland was one of those who was moved by Raad’s story. Like Raad, she herself was institutionalized when she was young, and was eventually placed in a foster home. – You can recognize yourself in much of what she tells, says Carina Gauslå about Isabel Raad’s foster home story. Here she stands with her husband Odd Asle. Photo: Kjetil Samuelsen / news The experiences made her choose to become a foster mother herself. – Just the thought that you are helping a person to have the most normal possible everyday life, the most normal life possible, so that they can become well-functioning themselves, it gives a lot, she says. Together with her husband Odd Asle, they have been in a foster home for a number of years. In addition to three biological children, they are foster parents to a 14-year-old girl. Here, the entire Gauslå family is gathered during a holiday trip to Egypt. Photo: Private – Living in a foster home crisis The National Association for Children’s Welfare praises Raad’s commitment to the issue. – I think it is great that she is doing this, says secretary general Jasmin Agovic-Nordaas. But he still wonders: – Isn’t it a bit strange that it takes an influencer to get attention about the lack of foster homes? This has been a systemic crisis for many years, he continues. Secretary General of the National Association for Children’s Welfare, Jasmin Agovic-Nordaas. Photo: Private Bufdir, which works with the recruitment of foster parents, describes the lack of foster homes as serious. The foster home report that came in June 2024 shows a clear decrease in the number of foster homes in recent years. – We are living in a foster care crisis. There are between 200 and 300 children waiting for a safe home right now, says Tone Granaas of the foster home association. – Becoming a foster home is perhaps the most important societal mission that one can take on, says Tone Granaas of the Norwegian Foster Home Association. Photo: Kjetil Samuelsen / news Bufdir has also received Raad’s plea to his followers. – We have heard the strong story of Isabel Raad, but it is too early for us to say anything about a possible effect on the recruitment of foster homes as becoming foster parents is a long process, says divisional director of Bufdir Tove Bruusgaard. Division director of Bufdir Tove Bruusgaard thought it was positive that such a high-profile person spoke about how important the foster home has been for her. Photo: Bufdir / Bufdir She also praises the initiative of Raad. – Raad reaches out to many people, and if it leads to more good and stable foster homes, that’s great, she says. How to become a foster home? Although there are some requirements, it is an overall picture that determines whether you can become a foster parent. This means that you can be approved as a foster home even if you do not meet all the requirements. Everyone who wants to become a foster home must go through basic training and assessment. This takes an average of 3 months. When you have finished your training and have been recommended as a foster home, it varies how long it takes before you find a concrete child who can move in with you. For more information, go to fosterhjem.no. Source: Bufdir.no Need more positive stories Bruusgaard in Bufdir says there is now long-term work to strengthen the foster care scheme, so that more people want to become foster parents. – The parliamentary notification that came in June will facilitate that we recruit and retain more foster homes, and that more children receive follow-up in their immediate environment, says Bruusgaard. The Norwegian Foster Home Association believes the new and better rights for foster families in the Stortings message, as well as positive stories that Raads will help with recruitment. – It is brilliant that Isabel has laid out the importance of good foster homes, and how significant it is for these children. We need more such positive stories, says Graanas. Tone Granaas in the Norwegian Foster Home Association at Arendal Week to talk about the foster care crisis she believes we are in. Using her voice more Isabel Raad tells news that she now wants to use her voice even more to promote foster care. – I know that there is a great shortage of foster homes. This was also a big problem when I was a child and waiting to be transferred from an emergency home to a foster home. This is a topic close to my heart, says Raad. Isabel Raad was very moved after the reunion with her own foster family this summer. – This is a topic close to my heart, says Raad today. Photo: Isabel Raad In Froland, the Gauslå family happily shares Raad’s call. – If one person can help one child, then we have achieved a great deal with today’s foster home crisis. If you have the time and opportunity, I would say that having a foster child gives back more than what you give yourself. Carina Gauslå and her husband Odd Asle support Isabel Raad’s call to become a foster home. Photo: Kjetil Samuelsen / news Published 21.08.2024, at 17.43
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Increased engagement around foster homes after Isabel Raad’s prayer to her followers – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
