LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56) — From a shortage of foster care parents to foster children going through traumatic experiences, foster care is getting a lot of attention at the state level. One local foster care advocate said she’s glad she got involved.

April Pieper is a Kentucky foster care advocate and a foster parent as well. She adopted three kids that she fostered, saying it’s been a joy to know she played such a big role in their lives.

“As a foster parent, you try really hard to remember that you’re there for the moment, that you’re there for such a time as this,” Pieper said.

There’s a lot of discussion at the state level on how to make more resources available for those involved in the foster care system. Eric Friedlander, the secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services, said input from those involved is key.

“We need to hear from the folks that are experiencing the system. That goes from foster parents themselves, to those who might be interested in becoming foster parents, and also from the youth who are in the foster care system. That really makes a difference,” Friedlander said.

As of now, town hall meetings are being planned on the state of the foster care system. A big component of it is getting more foster parents in the system, which leads to big opportunities for the children involved.

“What the foster parents do is give that base level of support for the child to be successful. It can happen, and it does happen often. Not all the time, but often where that foster parent makes such a difference that the foster child goes on to live a successful life,” Friedlander said.

When it comes to foster care, leaders and those involved both agree that the solution can’t just come from one side. It’ll require both to put their best foot forward.

“When you’re part of a solution, when you’re giving up yourself to somebody else, you get back tenfold. What you get back from what you can learn from these kids, what you can gain from really entering into what is a caring relationship with these kids, you will gain from that,” Friedlander said.

“Right now, everybody is looking to everybody else to find the answer. The true answer is, we have to work together,” Pieper added.

For information about becoming foster parents, visit the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services.