Molly Taylor loves the virtual world of teaching. She’s been an online teacher for the past 15 years.
Currently, Taylor teaches third-grade special needs students through Ohio Virtual Academy.
“My students are fabulous,” Taylor said.
For her, at-home learning during a pandemic wasn’t much of a game-changer.
“This was just normal,” she said. “I always say I was a virtual teacher before it was cool.”
Another benefit to teaching online is having more time at home. For this Marysville mom with both biological and adopted children, it’s the perfect setup for her “other” passion.
“If parents have to go to the hospital or they’re homeless or they may have to go into rehab and they don’t have any family or any neighbors that they trust to keep their kids, Safe Families is there,” Taylor said.
Helping families in crisis keep their children out of the foster care system is the nonprofit’s mission.
According to Safe Families for Children, of the 438,000 children placed in foster care, 70% of cases could be preventable because they are due to neglect and lack of a reliable support system.
“We know that once kids get into foster care, the statistics are just awful for everything all around, socially, academically, mentally,” Taylor said.
With trained and vetted volunteers providing temporary homes for these children, they don’t become lost in the system. There are currently 120 chapters of Safe Families for Children in 40 states.
Their four main objectives are to prevent neglect and abuse, prevent unnecessary foster care placements, prevent, reduce and repair childhood trauma and provide family stabilization.
“Due to having our own young kids in our house, we knew we wanted to help, but we could not be a host family where we actually take kids into our home,” Taylor explained. “So, another huge need is to support those families are taking kids into their home.”
Taylor does her part by opening up her home as a donation drop site. She collects donations of clothing, car seats, furniture, diapers and other items the host families may need to provide for children in their care.
Soon, what started out as a closet of supplies expanded to her entire basement. Her kids help sort through the donations and get them prepared for use. For the Taylor family, it’s a labor of love.
If you’re interested in becoming a host family or volunteering with Safe Families for Children, you can get more information here.
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