SFC Staff Profile: Veronica Crawford
Veronica Crawford, Licensing Specialist
Since 2003, Veronica Crawford has devoted her professional career to the welfare of children. She started her work with Spaulding in 2008 as a foster care worker.
“After my first interview at Spaulding, I knew it was the agency for me,” Ms. Crawford said. “I felt the warmth and a genuine care of team spirit.”
As other opportunities were presented, Veronica gained experiences as an Initial Home Study Worker, Trainer and Recruiter of foster families, in addition to her service as Foster Care Supervisor. In 2015, Veronica was thrilled when an opportunity opened up for her to rejoin Spaulding to work as a Licensing Specialist.
As a Licensing Specialist, Veronica is responsible for the recruitment of foster parents, training and assessment of prospective foster parents in addition to promoting Agency programs in the community.
(For details, please see “Becoming a Licensed Foster Home” and “Matching a Child with a Foster Home” below.)
Ms. Crawford said the biggest public misperceptions about children in foster care comes from labeling — and mislabeling — children.
“Some people wrongly assume the children in foster care are ‘bad’ kids, and there’s nothing you can do with them,” Ms. Crawford said. “The truth is every child is different and you need to take the time to get to know them. Trauma affects children differently. The more you know, the more you will understand them and be able to help.”
Veronica added that until prospective foster parents are around other foster families, they will not really know all that’s involved. And that includes all the rewards of foster parenting.
“It’s vital that new foster parents network with other parents so they will not feel alone,” she said. “As an agency, we connect new foster parents with seasoned foster families — along with countless other resources, from training to social events that provide support and guidance.”
Spaulding for Children has been and remains a committed agency on behalf of its stakeholders, parents (birth, adoptive and foster), the community and most important, to the children.