It’s just another morning in the Casler household.

Jennifer Casler dropped her two children off for school and returned home to work for CiTi Boces.  

But on some days, that one call could mean the Casler family is about to get bigger.

“We can take anywhere between one and three, it really depends on their ages and needs,” said Jennifer.

The Caslers have spent nearly two years welcoming children into their house in Laconia.

“We learned very early on that our daughter had a set of skills that kids would open up to her even at young ages,” said Jennifer. “Our daughter would bring it home with her and she would say, ‘What do I do? How do I help these kids?’ and it kind of opened our eyes to maybe we needed to do something as a family," said Jennifer, a foster parent.

They’ve had 12 children so far, some staying for a night, others for months.

But one thing they have in common, they all head to the book shelf when they step inside.

“The kids we get, they get emotional,” said Jennifer. “They can get agitated really easily and they can pull out these books and start popping dots. The books really are a great way to break the ice, get kids comfortable.”

They come from the foster care program at the Children’s Home of Jefferson County, which serves Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence, Oswego, Oneida, and Onondaga counties.

Megan Badour, the Fostering Futures Watertown program manager, says they have 163 homes and 70 youth, ranging from birth to 21-years-old.

“We always need foster parents,” said Badour. “The need right now is more focused on sibling groups. So, larger groups of children, three to four children, sometimes more, as well as teenagers.”

Badour says most children need care because of their guardians’ drug use or abuse.

She hopes more people will provide a safe space.

“There is a training course in which our foster parents go through,” said Badour. “That gives them time to make a foundation to make an informed decision on whether or not fostering and or adopting is right for their family. The commitment to that is a 10-week process.”

They learn how to nourish and nurture these children, but eventually, reunite them with their parents.

Badour says 50 percent go back home, but they would love to see that happen more often or be placed with kin.

“It’s rewarding when we know that the children we have in our home, they are continuing on to a safe journey,” said Jennifer.

“Whether they are going home and being reunited as a family unit, or they are being adopted.”

Jennifer says they benefit too, becoming better parents as they give these children a home to heal and a family to trust, when they need it the most.

If you’re interested in becoming a foster parent, go to www.chjc.org or call (315) 788-7430.