Just outside 麻豆传媒 lies a quaint stone farmhouse. Cheerful flowers adorn the front yard, and as you pull into the driveway, Joseph Hildebran and his little white dog, Lou, bound off the porch to greet you.
Hildebran is a regional foster care recruiter for Lutheran Services Carolinas, covering Iredell, Catawba, Caldwell, Burke, Wilkes, Lincoln, Cleveland and Gaston counties. He is also a single dad extraordinaire. Hildebran has poured his heart and soul into creating a place of comfort and creativity for his own foster-to-adoptive children in the town where he grew up.
鈥淚 guess I鈥檓 a spiritual person by nature,鈥 he said. 鈥淢y mom tells me that when I was 5 years old, I was outside playing in my playhouse one day when I started to cry. I came to her and said, 鈥楳ama, I want to adopt.鈥欌
Joseph Hildebran and his children pose on the front porch of his 麻豆传媒 home. Hildebran is a regional foster care recruiter for Lutheran Services Carolinas, covering Iredell, Catawba, Caldwell, Burke, Wilkes, Lincoln, Cleveland and Gaston counties.
Hildebran鈥檚 first opportunity to foster came in 2014. He had moved to West Virginia and was studying to become a teacher when a neighbor who had fallen on hard times asked him to care for her son, one of seven children.
People are also reading…
鈥淪he was struggling with substance-use disorder and completely overwhelmed,鈥 Hildebran said. 鈥淗e stayed with me for a year.鈥
Hildebran later moved to Tennessee, where he was licensed as an emergency foster parent. He has since fostered several more children and adopted three.
Hildebran鈥檚 son, Brayden, came to him as a toddler. The two were settling into life together when Hildebran received an urgent call from the local Department of Social Services: Brayden鈥檚 birth father and his partner had just had a baby girl, Rachel-Ann, and an emergency home was needed.
鈥淢ost people have nine months to prepare. I had nine minutes,鈥 Hildebran said. 鈥淚 had nothing for a baby.鈥
The community rallied around Hildebran and his growing brood. Some women from a local Methodist church donated a crib, baby supplies and a helping hand.
鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 even a member of their church,鈥 Hildebran said, 鈥渂ut they came and rocked the baby so I could sleep.鈥
It is not uncommon for multiple children from a biological family to enter the foster care system. It is less common to be able to keep those children together. Hildebran is glad to do his part. In addition to Brayden and Rachel-Ann, he has fostered and since adopted their cousin, Rebekah.
During the pandemic, the family moved to Morganton, where Hildebran fixed up the farmhouse they now call home.
On the first floor of the house, musical instruments, Bible quotes and a woodstove give the impression you鈥檝e stepped back in time. Upstairs, whimsical colors adorn the children鈥檚 bedrooms, while toys, books and shoes are lined up neatly in the playroom. There鈥檚 a secret room Hildebran discovered in the girls鈥 bedroom wall.
When talking about how he creates a nurturing environment as a single parent who works full-time, Hildebran is quick to acknowledge his support network.
鈥淲e have a wonderful housekeeper who comes over the mountain four days a week,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd my sister and mother live close by.鈥
Hildebran is most proud of the fact that his children are well-adjusted.
鈥淲hen you look at them side by side with other children in their grades, you can see they are good, caring kids. Their teachers adore them,鈥 he said.
鈥淚 have tried to plant kindness,鈥 Hildebran said.
The family also knows how to have fun.
鈥淲e have a big garden out back, a pool and a trampoline,鈥 Hildebran said. 鈥淲e like to hang our hammocks out in the trees and sleep on the front porch when the weather is warm.鈥
Hildebran鈥檚 house fills as the children return home from school. It鈥檚 Friday, cause for celebration. A squabble erupts over television 鈥 half an hour, Rebekah鈥檚 turn to choose 鈥 and where to eat dinner.
Like all families, Hildebran鈥檚 is not immune to occasional discord. Like the best families, it is deeply rooted in love.
For information on foster parenting with LSC in North Carolina, email NCFosterCare@LSCarolinas.net.
