2018 All-Stars

8 years in Montana’s Foster Care System Daniel is a 19-year-old from Montana. He experienced four placements while in care. Three foster homes and one group home. Daniel is passionate and eager to share his story about resilience, strength, and love. Daniel experienced a lot of adversity in care, including... Read more

11 years in North Dakota’s Foster Care System Angel Koehler is an 18-year-old from Fargo, North Dakota. While in care she bounced around between several different foster homes. After she became aware that she would not be reuniting with her biological family she began advocating for foster youth. She currently... Read more

1 year in Vermont’s Foster Care System. Libby Branch is an 18-year-old from Vermont. She was adopted at a young age and currently lives with her two guardians and brother. Libby prides herself on volunteering for organizations she cares for and stays active in her community. She volunteers for Planned... Read more

5 years in Texas’ Foster Care System Aleea Guzman is a 20-year-old from El Paso, Texas. Aleea entered care when she was 14 years old, due to substance abuse in her household. She is the oldest of five siblings. When she was 18, she had the chance to join her... Read more

7 years in Wisconsin’s Foster Care System ShawnaRae Bruch is a 20-year-old from Wisconsin. She was first placed into foster care as a toddler, and was in and out until she aged out at 18 years old. While in care she moved to many different placements, and attended ten different... Read more

14 years in Oregon’s Foster Care System Phoenix Ramirez is 19 years old. Between the ages of four and 18, Phoenix was in and out of foster care throughout the state of Oregon, placed in 13 different foster homes as well as four treatment facilities. He has aged out of... Read more

4 years in Montana’s Foster Care System They/Them pronouns Jaxx Saunders is an 18-year-old from Montana. Most of their life, Jaxx was in and out of the system. The first time they were removed, they resided in Kansas, and were taken away at the young age of around 3. After... Read more

2 years in New Mexico’s Foster Care System Marco Martinez is a 24-year-old born in Mexico, and resides in New Mexico. After spending more than two years in foster care and has served as a youth advocate since 2011. In 2015, Marco served as a youth consultant to the collaborative... Read more

7 years in New York’s Foster Care System Joseph DeBiew grew up in Buffalo, New York. In 2005, he lost his mother and was put in the care of his grandparents. After struggling with addiction, Joe was put into a residential treatment facility and then bounced in between group homes... Read more

1.5 years in Washington’s Foster Care System Yeshi Vaughan is a 22-year-old from Washington. Her story into foster care begins in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She was 14 years old and had been living in an orphanage for about three years when she was adopted by a family from the United... Read more