For more than a decade, June has been designated National Reunification Month. The month celebrates and brings awareness to the most desirable and positive legal permanency option for children in foster care. Follow along this month in our limited blog series as we explore family reunification.
Let’s start at the beginning. Why are children removed from their parents and what happens to them?
The decisions by Child Protective Services (CPS) to remove a child from their home is never made lightly. In West Texas and across the state, the primary reasons for removal include neglectful supervision, substance abuse, and domestic violence—situations that often stem from poverty, trauma, or lack of support rather than intentional harm. It’s important to understand that, with rare exceptions, all parents who have their children removed love their children deeply but may be facing overwhelming circumstances and in some cases are the product of the foster care and child welfare system themselves.
When children are removed, CPS seeks the least disruptive but safest option possible. First, they look for kinship placements—relatives or close family friends who can provide stability. If that’s not possible, children may enter foster care or be temporarily housed in shelters until a longer-term plan is arranged.
At the heart of every case is a child longing for their family and parents trying to get their children back. This makes reunification the primary goal in every CPS removal. Viewing these families with compassion helps communities support healing and reunification.
Join us next week as we look at what the parents go through as they try to reunify with their kids.
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