The strength of family connections can have a profound impact on a young person’s sense of belonging and stability. For Levi and Charlie, reconnecting with their family wasn’t just a hope—it was a necessity. After spending over a year in temporary care, separated and without a permanent home, they needed more than just a placement; they needed family and connection.
Our Northern NSW Foster Care team went above and beyond to create connections for two young people to build a family network. Levi and Charlie had been through a lot. After their long-term placement broke down, they spent over a year in temporary care, separated from each other, without a permanent place to call home. The Case Work team in our Northern NSW operations knew how important family was and worked hard to find connections for Levi and Charlie, giving them a sense of belonging. The first step was reconnecting the boys with their paternal grandmother. She’d always been part of their lives, coming to family time every month until the pandemic hit, and then caring for her sick husband made it impossible for her to travel. When she finally got to see them again, it was a heartwarming moment as Levi and Charlie dived right into her embrace.
The joy on their faces said it all—this was the connection they had been missing.
Helen Hanslow Fostering and Permanency NNSW
But the team didn’t stop there. In November, during a Connecting Families Training they worked on real cases to find family members and strengthen relationships. This sparked something amazing for Levi and Charlie. Through Facebook, they tracked down their older sister, who was living in New Zealand. She had never met her little brothers, as she’d moved away with their father before they were born. When the team reached out, she was ecstatic. She had always known about them and had been on her own family-finding mission. Zali connected us with her younger brothers Tyson and Tiger, who lived just an hour and a half from Levi and Charlie and were eager to connect, too.
Soon enough, Levi and Charlie were meeting their older brothers and connecting with their sister online. It wasn’t long before they were celebrating birthdays together, creating new memories, and building a supportive, caring relationship that felt like it had always been there.
“We are feeling a mixture of joy and nostalgia after connecting with our little brothers. The laughter and fun we shared together this weekend have brought back so many memories and feelings of closeness. It’s heartwarming to have them back in our lives after so long, and it feels like a huge step towards rebuilding our relationship with them,” said Tiger.
The team also worked to improve time with their father. What had once been just a couple of hours in a park or café once a month has now grown into something much more meaningful. They now spend weekends together, getting the chance to really know each other and strengthen their bond.
Thanks to the team’s thoughtful approach to Levi’s Individual Placement Arrangement (IPA), those strong family connections are thriving.
