Mattoon native Leann Knight has lived all over Central Illinois, but has made Champaign her home. A Special Education teacher at Dr. Howard Elementary School in Champaign, she is about to begin her 12th year of teaching. But few challenges from the world of education have matched the ones she and her husband, JR Knight, have received in the last 16 months or so. That’s when JR and Leann went from having a household of two to an instant family of four overnight, as they welcomed two children to foster. Now they have a little boy (4), and two girls 2, and 6 months.
See why we think Leann is a Chambana mom to know.
Champaign couple JR and Leann Knight are fostering three siblings ages 4 and under. It was as if they had an instant family. Photo provided
Q: You decided to take fostering route to adoption rather than going outside of the country. What led to that decision for you and your husband?
We were drawn to the kids in the US and the amount of them that need good homes. I have a personal friend who has adopted six kids and she really inspired me to make a difference. I also have a lot of experience in the school system with children who are in the foster care system and how much love and support they need.
Q: You became a family of four — with a preschooler and toddler — overnight. How did you get through that time?
It was really overwhelming. My husband and I make a pretty great team. We had NO idea what we were really getting in to. The most important thing that we had going for us was our communication. When things would get difficult we would just process the situation together and even if we made a mistake we were a united front. The timing was also amazing and they came to us the day before I was finished with school for the year. So I took that last day off and was able to help the kids adjust to a new environment over the summer.
Q: You are now a family of five. How was it different taking a baby in versus the older children?
I wasn’t sure how to react at first. We had a routine in our family and one day i’m sitting at my desk and get a phone call that the two kids we have just got a new sibling. We had about 45 minutes to make a decision about whether or not we were going to accept the baby. It didn’t take us long to decide that the most important (thing is) to keep these kids together. So 26 hours later we picked her up from the hospital. The thing that I noticed is that it wasn’t that different adding one more into the mix of things. Then I started losing sleep. 🙂 Once again the timing was impeccable and we got her on the last day before winter break.
Q: What are some of the challenges you’ve faced as foster parents — and the rewards?
I think the biggest challenge of being a foster parent is just that you have no idea who you will be placed in your home. You can be minimally prepared by having a bed and a room, but you can’t get clothes and a few toys but in both cases we had nothing and both times we were up late getting bedrooms ready for the kids that once we knew exactly who was coming to us. Once we had our placement I found that our biggest struggle is laundry. I knew it was three more people but they are so little, who knew they would use so many clothes. 🙂
The biggest reward that we get is that we have the opportunity to be apart of these kids’ lives. Many people will say how lucky they are to have us but they forget how lucky we are to have them as part of our lives. They really are wonderful kids even if they are your typical 4- and 2-year-old stubborn children.
Q: What tips do you have for others who want to get involved in fostering?
I would just suggest getting to know your various organizations and how the whole process works. We go through Lutheran Social Services. We have had a very good experience with them.
Q: Where have you found support in this journey? Is there are a community of foster parents in C-U that you can tap into?
We have gotten most of our support from our friends and family. We had several friends come out and help us get ready for the kids to arrive and many people who help us out when we need a break. My sister- in-law went out and purchased enough clothes for us to dress an entire army of infants. It was a wonderful blessing. I also had a friend who babysat the youngest when I had to go back to work and she was too young to go to daycare. God has provided us with some really great people.
It’s also nice to talk to other foster parents that we met in class. It’s a different kid of experience being a foster parent, only one that other foster parents can really understand.
Q: What is your favorite thing to do together as a family?
We like to go outside. For their birthdays they received everything sports related, a trampoline, and a tricycle for the 2 -year-old. My husband and our 4-year-old have been practicing soccer moves. The 4- and 2 -year-old have been riding their bikes on the driveway. It’s fun to watch them as they learned how to use the pedals.
Q:) What are the next steps for your family? Will you be able to adopt?
When people find out that we’re fostering and haven’t adopted them they are surprised by that. We’ve been told that we treat them like they were our own. We don’t know any other way to treat them. Right now this is our family.
Leann Knight was nominated to be a Chambana mom to know. Do you know of a mom or dad who should be featured? Contact us today!
