Family for a Season: What One Yes Made Possible

Travis and Becca Smith, Connected Foster Family

Saying yes to foster care did not happen on the same day for Travis and Becca. Their journey began years before they ever opened their home, shaped slowly through experiences, conversations, and moments when God softened and prepared their hearts.

For Becca, the desire began early. When she was 15, her parents felt led to foster, and something in her heart shifted too. As she grew older, the need became clearer, and the longing to be part of the solution never left.

For Travis, the path looked different. He often worried about the heartache foster care might bring. Over the years, he watched Becca’s family welcome children with open arms, eventually adopting the boy who is now his brother-in-law. Seeing their willingness made an impression, but he still held back, unsure whether he could step into something so vulnerable.

Then one night, while serving as a student pastor, a student asked a question that changed everything. They were discussing what the Bible says about abortion, and Travis began listing the reasons someone might feel unprepared to parent. As he spoke, it struck him that those were the same reasons he had used to say no to fostering. In that moment, he sensed God working in his heart, removing barriers one by one.

“It wasn’t just about loving the children,” Travis shared. “It was about loving their biological families too.”

When they finally said yes, everything changed. Their experience with Connected became unlike anything they had known before. They felt supported, encouraged, and surrounded by a team with a deep “why” behind every decision and every step.

Fostering deepened their understanding of God’s faithfulness. It taught them to trust Him in seasons of uncertainty. From adjusting family routines to welcoming new placements, they saw God’s steadiness meet them again and again.

They shared this same posture with their daughters, reminding them that any child who enters their home will be loved fully, whether for a weekend, a few months, or a lifetime.

As their yes took root, it began to ripple outward into their church. Their first placement opened eyes. Their church formed a missions team. During VBS, the kids raised enough money to pack 106 birthday boxes for children in care. Church members helped deliver the boxes and later visited the Connected office to learn more about the ministry. The Smiths hosted support meetings and began dreaming with their congregation about how to continue serving vulnerable children and families in their community.

None of this would have happened without their church’s support, prayers, and acts of love. They still remember coming home after receiving a placement to find their porch filled with bags of essentials from people who cared deeply about the children stepping into their home.

Foster care has been both one of the hardest and one of the most joy-filled yeses they have ever made. It has allowed them to show the love of Jesus to children and families in their greatest time of need — and to witness what God can do when a family, and a church, chooses to say yes.

Travis and Becca offer this encouragement to anyone considering fostering:

“Start by praying. Talk to your spouse. Talk to your kids. And reach out. You do not do this alone. Connected is ready to walk with you through every step.”