Editor's Note: Window on the Clearwater has joined the Wednesday's Child network to help spread the word about children that are waiting for families to give them the loving care that they need. Each Wednesday we will profile a different child. For more information about Wednesday's Child and how you can be involved check the web site at: http://www.idahowednesdayschild.org/.

Jacob

Age: 14

"My name is Jacob. My friends call me Jake. I'm ready to be with a family. I will show them I can listen and work to gain their respect. I need parents who will give me respect, too. It isn't important to me where I live--just with a family that will care about me."

Fourteen-year-old Jacob is an active child who enjoys a wide variety of activities. He loves the outdoors, especially fishing and swimming, and also enjoys riding bikes. Jacob has taken a liking to cooking, the arts (pottery, oil marbling, drawing, etc.), and is very interested in working on cars one day. He likes pets, especially kittens and dogs.

Jacob is eager to find a family that will provide a nurturing, consistent environment. He may take a while to open up to strangers, but he has a big heart and responds very well to one-on-one attention. He will do best in a family that can be patient with him and encourage him to express feelings and emotions in appropriate ways.

While Jacob was used to being one of the older children in his family, the adoption team feels a family with older children would be a great option for him--as would parents who want to focus on him as the only child.

School can be a challenge for Jacob. He will need a family that will be diligently involved in his education. He would be most successful with parents who utilize community resources, including medication management and counseling. An adoptive family that understands issues that arise from abuse and neglect will have the empathy, as well as the personal values that will show Jacob what kind of young man he can become.

Jacob's current progress is an indication that he responds well to a safe, predictable environment where he can depend on adults to make good decisions. He is building his own capacity to do the same. Jacob is optimistic about finding a new family and hopes to surround himself with loving parents and possibly siblings in the near future.

Portrait by Barb from Barb Bergeson Studio Gallery

To find out more about Jacob, adoption or becoming a foster parent, email the Idaho CareLine or call 1-800-926-2588. You may be asked to provide this reference number: 30242.

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