Lorenzo

Lorenzo is a rough and tumble boy with a big heart and a generally happy demeanor. Bright, charming, and friendly, he thrives on attention from caring adults. An attractive youngster with a husky build, Lorenzo says he’d like to be a football player when he grows up. For now, his favorite pastimes are playing games on Wii, taking long walks, riding his bike (wearing a helmet!), and playing outdoors. The significant relationships in Lorenzo’s life are with his social worker and the staff at the group home, where he moved in April 2012. He’s close to his previous foster parents, too, who live right down the street from his group home.

Lorenzo is doing really well in the group home setting where he is getting lots of encouragement, positive attention, and good strokes from staff who say he is “the best child currently in the home and a model resident.” He’s having a great summer participating in many activities that his doctors said were previously off limits for him. Under new medical guidelines he’s having great fun participating at soccer camp and gymnastics camp. Of course, he enjoys all the activities he’s been able to do all along, such a swimming, golfing, riding his bike, and taking long walks.

While Lorenzo continues to be monitored for a medical condition (his brain is too large for the size of his skull and pressure builds up) and has already undergone one surgery to relieve the pressure, his significant weight loss and his overall healthy lifestyle with a good diet and exercise have made further surgery unnecessary.

Lorenzo’s previous foster mom describes him as a good boy with a generally good attitude and bubbly personality. “He is very smart,” she says. She also believes that he has lots of potential. She is very pleased to hear that at his group home he is learning new coping tools and strategies to manage his feelings appropriately and to lessen his feelings of anxiety.

In the fall of 2012, Lorenzo will be in fifth grade. He no longer needs academic supports but benefits greatly when he has teachers and folks on the home front to encourage and motivate him to do his best to complete his classroom work and homework.

Being willing to participate with Lorenzo in counseling during his transition into his adoptive home could be a very meaningful way for his adoptive folks to show their love and commitment to him. It would also show that they value using such resources to help family members deal with past hurts and move forward in emotionally and behaviorally in healthy ways. It is likely that Lorenzo is going to need to have such supports to help him continue to sort through and deal with issues of past trauma and other residual effects from early childhood.

Legally free, Lorenzo came into foster care in mid 2009. While Lorenzo’s social worker is particularly interested in hearing from couples with one parent able to be available throughout the day, she also wants to hear from single moms and single dads who have strong support from family, friends, and community resources. Lorenzo needs to have structure, consistency, and clear rules, expectations and limits; he will also need to have nurturing, loving parents who will make a point of understanding his medical disorder and what how it may impact his emotional and behavioral issues. Lorenzo is still learning how to interact appropriately with family pets. In this regard he might do best with a family that does not plan to have pets for few years. For adoption information, call the Northwest Adoption Exchange at 1-800-927-9411.