A same-sex New Zealand couple who are foster caregivers to a four-year-old boy say he has changed from non-verbal to talking and excelling since he came to them just over a year ago.
TVNZ1's Seven Sharp has marked Foster Care Awareness Week, reporting that there are currently around 6000 children in New Zealand being supported by foster caregivers. The children have been placed by Oranga Tamariki, the Ministry for Children, because of serious concerns about their welfare.
When young Tama came to foster caregivers Patrick Ah Kuoi and Paul Martin just over a year ago, he was three, withdrawn and in desperate need of stability.
"He was just this shy little kid who popped his head round the doorway. He was open to love," Mr Ah Kuoi said.
Mr Martin said: "I just felt a real strong love for him straight away. It's bizarre, but I did. I just felt a real strong love for him.
"When we first got Tama he was non verbal. Now he's talking about the shapes of the moon - so half moon, crescent moon, full moon. He's talking about volcanoes. "He's excelling. He is doing so well, he's just an amazing little boy."
And Tama's two dads say they also have grown, from what they now regard as their self indulgence, to inclusiveness.
"We were those last ones to leave the party. Now we are the first. How did that happen?" Mr Ah Kuoi said.
"If I was to have my own biological child I don't think I could love that child any more than I love Tama."
Mr Martin added: "He knows he is safe here."
Mr Ah Kuoi recalled: "Paul and I got married. And nine months to the day we met Tama. And then two days later he was living with us, so he's a honeymoon baby."
The two foster carers don't see their family dynamic as unlikely.
"This is our normal, this is our family," one said.
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