1,243 days. That’s how many days in my life that I have spent in foster care. That is approximately 3.4 years. On average, foster kids spend about 1.7 years in foster care. (That is just under 20 months.) I’m Ally Loucks and this is my story.

Since I was just a young girl, case workers were in and out of my family’s home. I have four other biological siblings that also have experienced everything that I had. In our biological home, there were numerous cases of neglect, drug use, domestic violence, and homelessness.

In August of 2016, at the age of 9, I was placed in my first foster home with my younger sister. Prior to that day, my mother, sister, and I attended a court hearing to determine if my mother had met the requirements of Children and Youth Services to keep us in her custody. My father was incarcerated at this time. My brothers had been temporarily living with their friends’ family and my older half sister was at her father’s house.

The judge made the decision to remove all four of us children from my mother’s custody. A lot of kids are able to grab a few of their belongings before they leave, but that wasn’t the case for me. We left straight from the courthouse to our first home in foster care. We were so nervous, but we eventually got comfortable. I was a very shy kid and barely talked.

On average, foster kids spend about 1.7 years in foster care. (That is just under 20 months.)

One day during school, when we lived at our first foster home, my sister and I got called down to the office and we weren’t sure what for. We left the school and arrived at the Children and Youth Services to only find out that our dad, who just got released from jail 2 days prior, passed away. This was devastating for me because I had always hoped that my dad would rescue us from foster care.

I had always looked up to my dad, so I was so frustrated and broken.

All of my siblings and I were put into counseling to help us cope with our recent losses and trauma. Turns out we were all diagnosed with some type of mental health disorder, due to the effects of everything that occurred. My sister, who was very close with my parents, so having to leave them tore her apart. Due to the trouble in the home, we were moved to a different foster home. We were in and out of four different homes in a matter of three years.

No matter how many moves occurred, I knew I wanted to stay with my sister because she was all I had left.

During this time, we were looking for an adoptive parent. We came across many, but none seemed to fit for us. A few more days of looking on the website for adoptive parents, we found a single parent who was a perfect match for us. We started off with day visits, then night visits, and next weekend visits. We eventually got placed with her June 21, 2019. I felt like we had known each other for years. There were some ups and downs with Nikki (my adoptive mother) and my sister; however, Nikki would not give up on her and she made sure my sister knew it.

We spent six months with Nikki until we were able to be adopted.

I was eventually adopted with my sister on January 8, 2020. Our names were changed and so were our lives. I never thought I would be adopted, but special people are sent to us for a reason. My adoptive mother recently adopted two more girls on September 13, 2021. We have three dogs, Frankie, Coal, and Filomena, and two cats, Nikolai and Nola.

Our names were changed and so were our lives.

A message I would tell people is don’t let anyone or anything stop you in your tracks. No matter what goes on in life, reach for your goal and keep pushing. You are a strong person that can get through anything. Everyone has their own story, no matter what that person may look like. You have no idea what that person may go through when they go home.

I play volleyball and softball.

I have been on a high honor roll since 5th grade.

… and I have an amazing family who loves and cares for me.