Since the beginning, Garcia has kept an open line of communication with the birth parents and has even come to consider the children’s mother as a sister. “It’s better for the kids if you can have a good relationship with the family,” she says.

The hardest challenge they faced was the realization that one day, they would be separated from the children they had come to love. But on July 5th of this year, Joshua, 5, Eric, 6, Russell, 8, and Beatrice, 10, were legally adopted by the Garcia family. 13-year-old Ashley remains in their guardianship.

“We’ve had a lot of assistance and a lot of support,” she says. “Neighbor to Neighbor never left us out there swimming on our own.”

Visit www.hullhouse.org/n2n or call 773.374.9451 to learn more about becoming a foster parent with Neighbor to Neighbor.