{"url":"https://www.thebanner.com/education/early-childhood/baltimore-foster-parents-transforming-system-N6YFLR2IIJAIPCYH6IBNLFB32I/","title":"Baltimore Foster Parents House 15 Kids, Prioritize Reunification","domain":"thebanner.com","imageUrl":"https://images.pexels.com/photos/7978473/pexels-photo-7978473.jpeg?auto=compress&cs=tinysrgb&h=650&w=940","category":"Tech","language":"en","slug":"2f278815","id":"2f278815-2bd1-4e6a-8586-bc6ab604bb22","description":"De’Jonnae Boyd Moreno and José Moreno have fostered 15 children in Baltimore, aiming for reunification with birth families.","summary":"## TL;DR\n- **De’Jonnae Boyd Moreno** and **José Moreno** have fostered **15 children** in **Baltimore**, aiming for reunification with birth families.\n- Maryland faces a foster home shortage, with **Baltimore** losing over half its families from **2019-2024**.\n- The couple balances full-time jobs while providing cultural respect and stability amid system challenges.\n\n## The story at a glance\n**De’Jonnae Boyd Moreno** and **José Moreno**, a Northeast Baltimore couple, have cared for **15 foster children** over five years, far outpacing most families in a state desperate for placements. Their focus on reunification sets them apart in **Baltimore**, where foster homes have plummeted. This profile highlights their persistence as Maryland grapples with shortages that once left children in hotels and hospitals.[[1]](https://www.thebanner.com/education/early-childhood/baltimore-foster-parents-transforming-system-N6YFLR2IIJAIPCYH6IBNLFB32I/)[[2]](https://www.thebanner.com/education/early-childhood/baltimore-foster-parents-transforming-system-N6YFLR2IIJAIPCYH6IBNLFB32I)\n\n## Key moments & milestones\n- **De’Jonnae Boyd Moreno** answers late-night ER call, accepts first foster child—a **4-month-old**—and learns baby care via YouTube.\n- Couple fosters **14 more children** over **five years**, mostly under age 5, lining home stairway with their photos.\n- **Baltimore** loses more than half its foster families from **2019 to 2024**; Maryland has nearly twice as many kids as homes.\n- Adopt **2-year-old Evie** after long placement; continue fostering **1-year-old son** and infant daughter.\n- Throw combined quinceañera-baby shower for pregnant teen foster child; maintain daily contact with her.\n\n## Signature highlights\n- Most Maryland foster families quit within their first year; **Boyd Moreno** and **Moreno** persist despite midnight arrivals, medical visits, family supervised visits, child care waitlists, and self-funded extras like swim lessons and playdates.[[1]](https://www.thebanner.com/education/early-childhood/baltimore-foster-parents-transforming-system-N6YFLR2IIJAIPCYH6IBNLFB32I/)\n- They honor birth families' wishes—reading Christian books and church for current fosters—while teaching Spanish and creating photo albums for relatives; advocate **Alice Cook** praises this for preserving community ties, unlike harmful past examples she witnessed.\n- Home hums with \"joyful chaos\": **Evie** and foster son race post-daycare, infant sleeps through; **Boyd Moreno**, 33, runs fitness studio and State Department contracts; **Moreno**, 40, lobbies for Quakers.\n- Shortest stay: **13 hours**; each departure triggers **Boyd Moreno**'s \"full freaking meltdown,\" yet she insists attachment is essential before release.\n\n## Key quotes\n> “If you’re doing it right, you’re giving your all: all of your money, all of your time, all of your thinking space. You have to give with no expectation of anything.”  \n> — **De’Jonnae Boyd Moreno**\n\n> “Foster care is not to build your family. It’s to provide safe spaces for children.”  \n> — **De’Jonnae Boyd Moreno**\n\n> “They just won’t take the no that some do.”  \n> — **Bill Blevins**, president of **Baltimore City Resource Parent Association**\n\n## Why it matters\nFoster children face heightened risks of homelessness, incarceration, and abuse without stable homes, straining Maryland's overburdened system. For decision-makers, **Boyd Moreno** and **Moreno** model advocacy—pushing caseworkers and respecting roots—that retains families and prioritizes reunification over adoptions. Watch state efforts to end hotel placements and boost kinship care, as committed parents like them demand accountability.\n\n---","hashtags":["#baltimore","#foster","#care","#maryland","#childwelfare","#reunification"],"sources":[{"url":"https://www.thebanner.com/education/early-childhood/baltimore-foster-parents-transforming-system-N6YFLR2IIJAIPCYH6IBNLFB32I/","title":"Original article"}],"viewCount":3,"publishedAt":"2026-04-05T11:37:25.763Z"}