Thomas Taylor of North Carolina was 10 years old when she was first introduced to foster care. Her first placement was in a group home where she stayed for one year before being placed in her first foster home. She says that the greatest challenge in her experience in care was not seeing her mom and other family members: her grandmom, her sister, uncle and aunts and cousins. She feels, of all her skills, what serves her best is his persistance. Whether or not she knows how to do the job, she always does the best she can. With a GPA of 3.6, her immediate goal is to complete community college. She volunteers at the state fair grounds, participates in the Say So group, has received honors for her school grades as well as other academic awards, has been cited for police academy achievement, and volunteers to give foster children good mentoring and support. Thomas acknowledges that if she were not in foster care she does not think she would have the tools to finish high school, go to college or even get a job. She feels that the system is trying to make positive changes for youth in care. Thomas’ career goal is to become a police officer or a state trooper.