The Foster Cliff:
What happens when support ends
Today is Sarah’s 18th birthday, but there’s no celebration. No cake, no balloons—only fear.
She sits on the edge of a bed that was never really hers, clutching a tattered backpack, the one thing that has been with her through fourteen homes and six schools.
The knock at the door comes, sharp and inevitable.
It’s her caseworker. Sarah already knows what’s next: the foster system has no more room for her. She’s aging out.
For Sarah, this birthday marks the end of what little stability she had. She hasn’t finished high school, has never had a job, and doesn’t even know how to drive. She has no plan, no safety net, and no family to call her own. She's alone with nowhere to turn.
Today, as she steps out of this temporary shelter, she walks into a world of harsh realities—where the shadows of hunger, homelessness, and danger wait at every turn. The weight of survival rests squarely on her frail shoulders.
Sarah’s story is not unique.
Every year, more than 20,000 young people age out of foster care in the U.S., stepping into adulthood without the tools, resources, or support systems that they need. For many, the path forward is filled with closed doors: homelessness, unemployment, and a cycle of survival that leaves little room for hope. The world hides these youth in the shadows. Few know the terror these young lives have lived and the dark and unsure future before them.
