Rosemarie L. Poeppelman

Rosemarie L. Poeppelman

My hero is my mother, Rosemarie Poeppelman. She is my hero because she became a foster parent to help children. She didn’t always want to be a foster parent, but she always wanted to work with children. She wanted to be a teacher because she always wanted to help the children that were disadvantaged.

Mrs. Poeppelman had the urge to be a foster parent when she got married. In Cleveland, Ohio, she and her husband decided that they were going to be foster parents for a lot of reasons. They watched a television show every Tuesday night called “Tuesday’s Child.” In the show it talked about children who were in need of a home and someone who would care for them. This was one way to do that. Mrs. Poeppelman talked to her mother and explained that she wanted to do this to help children and give them a stable environment in which to live. Her mother encouraged her to do it. She then talked to her husband, Steven Poeppelman, who agreed that it was a good thing to do.

They looked for ways to get started. During their research, they found that in order to become a foster parent, you have to get a license. They quickly figured out that they needed to take a class in order to receive the license. They completed the class and received their license on a Tuesday night. The next morning their first child came to their house.

The most children that Mrs. Poeppelman ever housed were eight at a time. Some stayed for short weeks, some stayed longer. One young boy stayed for two and a half years. Finally, she and her husband decided that they wanted a permanent family because it was too painful to see all of those boys leave. She said they were like family and it was very difficult to let them go. They adopted me and my half little brother and sister.

Rosemarie Poeppelman is my hero because she managed to change numerous children’s lives, including mine. She helped us figure out what we wanted to do in our lives. Rosemarie told me, “I think that it helped these teenage boys get back on track with their lives.” I like that she actually keeps in touch with some of the children that she has had in the past. One young man, by the name of Shakka, that she housed, is now a graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in music.