Meet Grace
Grace is 17 years old. She has dark brown eyes, a quick smile when she trusts you, and a guarded look when she doesn’t. She works part-time at a fast food restaurant, attends high school with a 2.8 GPA, and in six months, she will age out of the foster care system.
She has just discovered she is pregnant.
14
different beds
14
different “this will be your forever family”
14
different goodbyes
Her History
Grace entered foster care at age 5. Her birth mother struggled with addiction and mental health challenges. Grace doesn’t remember much from those early years, just fragments: a dark apartment, being hungry, strangers coming to take her away.
By age 17, Grace has lived in 14 different placements.
Some placements were good. Foster parents who tried, who showed up at school events, who remembered her birthday. But they couldn’t adopt, or they moved, or they had their own crisis. Some placements were not good. Grace doesn’t talk about those.
She’s currently in her third group home. It’s fine. The staff rotate in shifts. The other girls come and go. Nobody stays long enough to become family.
Grace has never been adopted. She stopped hoping for that around age 12.
What She Never Had
- A mom to call when things get hard
- Anyone to teach her about healthy relationships
- A family group chat
- A grandmother’s house to visit on holidays
- Anyone who will still be there in five years
- Her own bedroom that stayed hers
Her caseworker, Ms. Miller, has been with her for 8 months. That’s longer than most. Ms. Miller knows the system and cares about Grace, but she also carries 32 other cases. There’s only so much attention to go around.
Marcus
Marcus is Grace’s boyfriend. He’s 17, a senior at a different high school. He aged out of foster care six months ago when he turned 18. He works construction, lives in a 400 square foot studio apartment, and sends money to his younger sister who is still in care.
He’s trying. He’s barely making it himself, but he’s trying.
Grace and Marcus understand each other in a way most people don’t. They both know what it’s like to pack your belongings in a trash bag. They both know the feeling of being someone else’s job instead of someone’s family. They both know what it means to age out with nothing.
When Grace tells Marcus she’s pregnant, he doesn’t run. He says, “We can do this, Grace. I mean, it’s scary, but we both know what it’s like to not have parents. We can be better.”
He means it. But wanting to be better and having the resources to be better are two different things.
The Reality
Grace has $347 in savings.
She has no health insurance after she ages out in six months.
The group home has rules about pregnancy. She might have to leave.
She’s supposed to graduate in four months.
Grace doesn’t know how to do this. But she knows she wants to give her baby what she never had: a family that stays.
The Statistics
Grace’s situation is not unusual. Among foster youth:
- 70% of female foster youth become pregnant before age 21
- Their children are twice as likely to enter foster care themselves
- Most age out with no family support and nowhere to turn
- Within four years of aging out, 50% will be unemployed, incarcerated, or homeless
These cycles are not inevitable. They can be broken. But it takes comprehensive support: safe housing, parenting education, job training, mental health services, and a community that doesn’t give up.
What Happens Next
Over the next two weeks, Grace’s story will unfold on our social media. You will vote on key decision points that determine her path:
- Who should Grace tell first about her pregnancy?
- Will transitional housing be available when she needs it?
- Can she maintain stability and keep her baby?
Your votes will show how factors beyond Grace’s control shape her future. This is the reality for thousands of young people: their outcomes often depend on whether the right resources exist at the right time.
Be Part of Grace’s Journey
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How You Can Help
At Central Texas Table of Grace, we provide the comprehensive support that changes outcomes like Grace’s.
On Giving Tuesday, December 2, you can remove the coin flip from a young person’s future. Your gift provides the resources that help young parents like Grace break cycles and build new traditions.
Join our Circle of Grace and be part of the village that doesn’t give up.
Donate Today!- Grace House provides emergency shelter when youth need safety
- Grace365 offers transitional living through age 24
- Vocational training leads to stable employment
- Case management provides ongoing guidance and support
Follow Grace’s Journey
Click any icon to read that part of the story:
We told Grace’s story over the past few days on Instagram and Facebook, with our community voting on key decisions. Each icon below links to the full post – click to see what happened, view the images, and understand how your votes shaped her path.
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