Important program update
The Family Resource and Training Center wishes to extend a heartfelt thank you to every one of you who has had such a caring heart for the youth we have served through this program for the past 10 years.
Please read the information below outlining how the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare plans to continue its diligent efforts to find permanency for all children in foster care in Idaho.
Please complete inquiries for any youth you are interested in as soon as possible so that we may process your inquiry before our website closes.
July 28, 2026
To Our Community Partners,
The Idaho Department of Health & Welfare has been proud to partner with Eastern Washington University (EWU) and other community partners to recruit adoptive families for Idaho’s children in foster care. Since Idaho’s Wednesday’s Child began over 25 years ago, the landscape of adoption from foster care has changed yet there continues to be a need for child-specific recruitment for youth most in-need of a permanent home. Over the years the department has reorganized how permanency cases are managed to address this need and to achieve timely permanency for children who cannot return home. These changes include permanency workers “teaming” earlier with family services workers and the addition of a Family Find team to help identify previously unknown relatives and connections for our youth in care. Meanwhile, advances in technology and social media have resulted in increased risks related to public profiles causing Idaho and other states to consider the long-term impact to the youth featured.
The Idaho Department of Health & Welfare is in a position to innovate practices for child-specific recruitment while demonstrating fiscal responsibility. With this in mind, the contract for Wednesday’s Child, Waiting Families and intensive recruitment services is ending effective 09/30/2026. These services will be provided through Youth Safety & Permanency team members beginning October 1, 2026. During this transition, the current website for Idaho Wednesday’s Child will be unavailable while an updated website is created for both our waiting children and waiting families. Idaho will continue to use the AdoptUSKids website during the transition to ensure ongoing efforts to achieve permanency for waiting children.
Thank you for your continued support and advocacy on behalf of Idaho’s children.
Thank you,
Jean M. Fisher
We’re excited to introduce you to Lillyan, a spunky girl who is looking forward to finally having a Forever Family to call her own! Lillyan enjoys reading; practicing her make-up; taking part in choir and theater; and going all out celebrating Halloween. She loves to stay active doing fun things like swimming; camping; hiking and playing volleyball. Lillyan’s current favorite foods are definitely Shrimp Scampi and brownies and she can cook some really great eggs!
Lillyan is an outspoken teen who knows how to advocate well for her own needs but is also compassionate and finds fulfillment in helping and comforting others when they are struggling. She has worked hard to determine what kind of a person she wants to be as she moves closer to adulthood and always tries to stick to her morals and values. Though Lillyan still finds it difficult sometimes to open up about her feelings, she is working really hard on learning to be more vulnerable when it comes to sharing her thoughts and feelings with the important people in her life. Lillyan works hard to learn new things and thinks of herself as a smart and capable person. She does exceptionally well in her math class at school. This driven young lady already knows exactly what she wants to be when she grows up… a very skilled auto mechanic!
Lillyan and her Permanency team believe that the best match in a family for her will be caregivers who are easy going but also structured in their home, with clear communication about boundaries and expectations. Calm parents who are good listeners, who will value what she has to say and who have the mindset that every day is an opportunity to start fresh in growing their relationship, will be an excellent fit. Lillyan longs for a family that will stick with her while she continues to mend her past trauma and who will spend quality time with her making new positive memories, people who will love her unconditionally and show up for the things she cares about. Lillyan and her Team are open to considering any kind of family make-up and are not opposed to considering an out of state family if they are a wonderful fit for her.
Every day in foster care is one too many for this deserving, resilient teen! We encourage you to inquire today to see whether your family could be a great match for Lillyan!
The Idaho Wednesday's Child Program prioritizes the safety and security of children, above all else. In an effort to protect the safety of the youth we serve, our process requires families to possess a current, approved adoption home study. Only families with a current home study can view youth's full profiles with videos and photos and submit inquiries, on the Secure Gallery Page.