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And the reaction was overwhelming," Blake Schmieg said. "We expressed our interest and our wiliness to adopt her if that was something that she wanted. the Schmiegs shared an idea that had been on their hearts for weeks. These are all my cards and I don't know what to do with them," Sadie said. I don't know where to go, I don't know who I'm going to stay with. "I had had the talk with my mom, and I was like, I don't really know what I'm going to do.
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"Where is she going to go once she leaves here, who has this girl, where's her safety net?" Rachel said.Īs those questions and conversations continued. They just all crowded me and were like, you're awesome, you're amazing, and I was like, wow I feel so loved," Sadie said.Ī feeling that only grew over the next few months and even after graduation, when both Sadie and the Schmiegs started to question what was next. "It was actually a really great experience, my younger brother who is seven now, and his name is Jensen, he goes 'Hi my name is Jenson James Schmieg' and he was like 'Nice to meet you,' and I was like nice to meet you too. "Initially when she came it was, she just needs somewhere until she can graduate high school," Rachel said. So in January, with just a few months left of the school year, Sadie moved in with the Schmeigs. With no idea where to go next, Sadie was introduced to the Schmiegs. "I had applied to college and I was like, I don't know if I can really go," Sadie said. It was a terrifying place for Sadie to be as she was finishing out her senior year of high school.
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She went to school and asked for help and she could not go back home," Rachel said. "The local police chief was trying to find a home for this girl that could not go back home. The Schmeigs had signed up as foster parents, mainly working with younger kids, when they got a phone call that would forever change their family. "Deciding to take in an 18-year-old girl when your oldest child is six or seven, I was like, I don't know what to do with a teenager," Rachel said. It's a feeling the Schmiegs felt strongly just a few months after meeting Sadie. "We didn't get to see your first steps or your smile, but we're not going to miss a second of your life from this moment on," Rachel Schmieg said. "Well it could have been worse," Rachel Schmieg said.īut the Schmiegs love learning more about the pieces of Sadie's life they missed out on. "Oh that's when I decided to cut my own hair," Sadie said while looking through old photos. It's a stage of Sadie that Blake and Rachel Schmieg didn't get to experience in person. "I think I was born at almost 10 pounds, so I was a huge baby," Sadie Schmieg said. It's why one South Dakota family went through a lengthy legal process to ensure one local teen was part of their family forever. Family provides a sense of belonging and security through all stages of life," Secretary Gill said. "Being part of a family doesn’t stop with adulthood. (KELO) - Since 2019, 132 children have aged out of South Dakota's foster system without ever finding a forever family to adopt them.ĭepartment of Social Services Cabinet Secretary Laurie Gill says while some of those youth were not legally available for adoption when they exited foster care, many of them can struggle to navigate life without the support of family.