Nikol Hasler
Former Midwesterner and current mother of three, Nikol comes to KCET with a background in video production, journalism, comedy writing, and non-profit work. Her non-fiction book won the 2010 Young Adult's Reluctant Reader's Award, and she has spoken at Yale, New York Women In Film, and various medical schools. When she's not working on side projects related to foster children, or home in her kitchen making pickles, she's out enjoying L.A.'s hiking and nightlife scene equally. She is always ready to hear "It's time for Dodger baseball!"
Miranda and Alex opened their homes and hearts a couple years ago to three girls, all under the age of three. Two of the girls are Latina and one is African-American. Today, they say their transracial family gets plenty of questions from people who are confused by their family makeup, but they are happy to answer if it means one more kid can get help in the foster care system.
Erin and Tony Kim have a blended family, with two birth kids and two foster-adoptive kids who range in age from to 9 to 15. In their inspiring and heartwarming story below, they share how fostering has helped them expand their family, their hearts, and their perspective.
As we move forward into 2018, lets take a look back at some of our coverage of some of the most influential women of the past year.
Three years ago, two women met randomly at The RightWay Foundation, an organization which provides transition age foster youth (TAY) employment and mental health services. One was The RightWay Foundation’s Director of Programs and Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Andraya Slater. The other was a former foster youth, Jasmine Morgan, unsure of which path to take in life.
Across Southern California, foster parents take in children from foster care to give them a loving, safe and comfortable home. Some of those children…
Carlos and Gail Remis have been on the front lines caring for foster children for the last 20 years, providing clean beds and hot meals, taking in large sibling sets, and emphasizing to children the importance of higher education. In their own words, they share their experience of fostering and adopting youth, and later training parents.
The former foster youth, who grew up in San Bernardino County and was placed in foster care at the age of 12, was ultimately reunified with her family–a fact which doesn’t happen often.
In this heartwarming story, Shivonne Costa, a child therapist, blogger and foster parent, shares her experience of becoming a foster mother to a sibling set of two, who were later diagnosed with Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD).
Single foster mother, Estrellita “Essie” Bradic, is a long-time elementary school teacher and advocate for foster children. Despite the year and a half of hurdles and setbacks she experienced while finalizing her foster/adopt license, she kept going until she found her perfect match in December 2016.
Scott Sparks & Wilber Rubio are two proud dads who fostered-to adopt three siblings from Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization, RaiseAChild. Read their inspiring journey to starting a family and how they navigated the foster care process.
Victor Pinzon, 25, knows about fighting. As a youth growing up in a gang-riddled Northern California neighborhood, he let his fists do the talking. Eventually his constant scrapes with the law landed him in juvenile hall by age 12, and he spent the next five years bouncing between detention halls and probation camps.
At the age of 24, Marisa works at Children’s Law Center of California (CLC) in Los Angeles, where she helps foster youth access the resources they need to advocate for themselves. Marisa spent her early years shuffling between relatives in Mexico and California before going into foster care at the age of 12.