Wednesday's Child: A space adventure with 16-year-old Bacari
CHELSEA - Sixteen-year-old Bacari enjoys talking about space and meteorites. People who know him say he has a great sense of humor!
During a tour of the Space Adventure Boston Exhibit in Chelsea, I asked him if he's always been a space guy.
"I'm good at building and putting tech together, so I would have to say yes," he told us. "I'm into science, but I'm not really good at math."
Walking along the NASA displays, it was the perfect place to talk about his dreams for the future. Bacari is polite and talkative. He also loves video games and drawing his own characters.
"I mean my first thing was being an engineer or someone that creates tech and stuff," he said.
But what he needs right now - is a forever family.
"I would want a dad or a mom or both, and then of course I want a dog or cat," Bacari said, adding, "yeah, it can be both - I don't mind."
"He's a sweetheart!," said Vicki Graham. She's a long-time teacher and experienced foster mother who knows Bacari well. She can't say enough about him.
"I've been a teacher and a foster mom for over 18, almost 20 years. There was something about Bacari. There was something that struck me, made me stop," she told WBZ-TV.
She describer her interaction when she first met Bacari.
"I said, you know, I just want to be real with you. I'm really sorry, you've been through a lot," Graham said. "It must be hard and I'm really sorry and he said 'I have hope.' I was kind of stunned, and I said that's amazing!"
She believes Bacari would do well in a caring family who can nurture his interests, from science to art.
"He needs a family that can pay attention to him and will understand his scientific quirks," she adds "and people who are caring. He's a passionate kid, he's a sweet kid. He is just a wonderful soul."
Bacari says his wants to be a creator and "just be like a person that draws or creates."
All family constellations will be considered, including single adults and families with older or younger children in the home. It is also important that an adoptive family helps Bacari maintain relationships with his siblings and other members of his biological family.
For more information you can contact MARE: 617-964-MARE (6273) or visit www.mareinc.org.
Since its inception in 1981, Wednesday's Child has been a collaboration of the Massachusetts Adoption Resource Exchange (MARE), the Department of Children & Families and WBZ-TV/CBS Boston. Hosted by Jack Williams for 34 years, this weekly series has given a face and voice to the children who wait the longest for families. Wednesday's Child has helped find homes for hundreds of waiting children and continues to raise awareness about adoption from foster care.
