About
From a young age, I felt a pull toward marginalized communities and the urgency to speak out against unjust systems. As an adult adoptee, I have found my space as an advocate for foster and adoptive children, and kinship and birth families. I am passionate about educating and supporting foster and adoptive parents and communities in trauma-informed care, cultural identity and attachment. I am a transracial adoptee advocating to rebuild child welfare in a wholistic, equitable, inclusive, and trauma-informed framework. I am passionate about building healthy spaces where everyone’s voice is valued, whole stories are told, and families and cultures are honored. I imagine systems that prioritize prevention, family reunification, and foster and adoptive families that champion adoptee and biological families’ voices and cultures.
What I Do
Advocacy and Consulting Services
Biological, Kinship, Foster, and Adoptive Families
Churches
Support Groups
Training
Curriculum Design
Speaking
Foster Care and Adoption is multifaceted. Whether you are a biological parent, a kinship family foster or adoptive parent, an adoptee, or interested in becoming involved, I am here to walk through this journey with you.
Beyond the individual, I work with organizations and churches to shape equitable, inclusive, and trauma-informed kinship, foster care, and adoption programs and ministries.
Testimonies
“I cannot say enough about Erin as a mentor, consultant, and advocate. My husband and I were thrown into the world of foster care and adoption at a moment’s notice, and we were wildly unequipped to navigate this world on our own. The day my husband told me he had just learned his nephews were in foster care in another state, I immediately called Erin. She has taught us, encouraged us, challenged us, advocated for us, and more importantly, for our nephews every day since. It is through her that we were introduced to the world of trauma-informed care, and we have asked for her opinion on basically every major decision, every transition plan, and every best-interest question along the way. Her personal experience as an adult, transracial adoptee, and former foster mom, combined with her years of professional experience, is invaluable. Lord willing, all of our nephews will be reunified with their families, and we owe much credit for that to Erin’s guidance. ”
— MOLLY YATES ~ Kinship Family
“Erin was an invaluable resource to our family during our foster and adoption journey. Her perspective as an adult adoptee and former foster parent, as well as her experience as a social worker, gave us insight into the workings of the foster system, helped us feel seen and supported, and grew our compassion for birth families. She walked beside us throughout the whole process, even attending court hearings with us and helping explain what was taking place and why. She was a huge source of encouragement and when things were hard and knew how to help us process the beauty and brokenness of fostering and adoption. Our experience would not have been sustainable or as holistic as it was without Erin.”
— JEN HANSON - Adoptive and Former Foster Mom