By Sara StrongBetty Ehlers is limiting her diaper changing duties to her grandchildren these days. It’s not that she’s tired of it, but she is downsizing after raising her own five children and taking in 22 others through the foster care system.Ehlers, Luverne, was honored in recognition of May being National Foster Care Month for being a foster parent for 20 years."I’ve always liked children and they all deserve to be loved and get TLC," Ehlers said. "And I’ve always loved babies, especially."She specialized in infants and toddlers, taking in only a couple 10- to 12-year-olds.Before she accumulated these 20 years of foster care experience, she got into the system only after she and her late husband, Eldon, consulted with their first four children."We had a family council meeting," she said. "They treated the foster children like their own brothers and sisters. … They all knew babies before they got married on their own, and have said it was a good thing."Ehlers adopted one of the family’s foster children, Anna.She said, "There are different reasons that children come into the foster care system, but every one is precious."Many of the babies who entered the Ehlers home were waiting to be adopted, were children of mothers who were undecided about keeping the baby, or were children who were court removed from the home.The children Ehlers cared for represent a minute fraction of the need for foster care. According to the Department of Human Services, there are 5,377 licensed foster homes in Minnesota, but there are 11,300 children who need foster care.Nancy Lange, with Rock County Family Services, has worked with Ehlers through the years. She started out as a Child Protection worker and now licenses people to become foster parents.Lange said, "She was so nurturing and very calm. She was so easy to work with and always conscientious and accountable."Around Rock County, Ehlers is known for having a stream of different children in her life, so much so, that people often ask if her grandchildren are foster children. She also remembers going out to eat with her husband while they were with a 1-year-old foster child. They sat next to a couple who watched the Ehlers interact with the boy, and finally asked if it was the couple’s first child. Betty replied that it was their 19th. She paused to let the other couple react before she explained that they were foster parents.While she loved the tender and humorous moments of caring for children, Ehlers also had some hard times.Once, a newborn went limp in her arms as she fed her in the night. The baby didn’t seem to have a strong pulse. Living in the country at that time, Eldon quickly took Betty and the baby to the emergency room, where she was admitted to the hospital.Ehlers said, "I was so happy to put her into the arms of a nurse." The doctors didn’t find a specific problem with the baby and she was fine within a couple days.Even though the Ehlers suffered from broken hearts when it was time for the children to leave, Betty said her foster care experiences have been worthwhile. A plaque in her home displays the Foster Parent Creed: "A hundred years from now it will not matter what our bank account was, the sort of house we lived in, or the kind of car we drove. But the world may be different because we were important in the life of a child."She encourages more to give it a try. "I hope there are younger families who can open their homes and hearts to little children who need help," Ehlers said. "It’s so good for the heart to share love."Other foster families in Rock CountyBrian and Rachel SudengaDan Biever and Lori WinterBruce and Jodi Van Den BoschRod and Lisa RosinJim Juhl and Brenda WinterLarry and Judi Wiley
