The topic of child welfare looms large in my novel  Our Orbit. It tells the story of an Appalachian girl  who crosses the tracks to become foster daughter to an educated family. Love and conflict ensue as all the burning social issues of our time raise their sometimes ugly heads.  In gratitude to those who helped me learn about the many demands and great rewards of foster care, I am  sharing information on this topic throughout the month of May 2015,  National Foster Care Month. Pure luck helped me stumble upon the lovely blog and website of a young biological and foster mother named Kelly Cone. Kelly posted the following excellent suggestions last December, but they are every bit as timely now. Many of us are not in a position to   make the necessary commitment to become foster parents. Nonetheless, we admire those who take this plunge and would like to support them and their children by contributing in some small way.   Have no fear! Kelly of The Cone Zone is here to tell us how — How You Can Help Foster Children Without Becoming Foster Parents There are currently nearly 400,000 children in foster care in the United … Continue reading How To Help Foster Children (Without Becoming a Foster Parent)