Colby Marksmeier
Colby Marksmeier was inspired to be a foster parent after his own experience. After getting into trouble as a kid, Marksmeier was removed from his home and placed into the foster care system. That journey gave him a unique perspective on what children in the foster care system face.
“The hardest thing was standing in front of a judge and hearing my parents say, ‘No, I don’t want this kid back home,’” Marksmeier said. “It was the hardest thing.”
As an adult, Marksmeier built a career and traveled around, but the idea of fostering never fully left him. After becoming a licensed foster parent through Child Saving Institute (CSI), Marksmeier was ready for his first placement. He soon learned about Korben, a child in foster care who needed a home.
“We kind of shared the same background, and I thought, ‘I’m going to give this a chance,’” Marksmeier said.
Marksmeier remembers the anticipation and excitement, preparing for Korben’s arrival and creating a space where he would feel welcome.
“I remember with his room,” Marksmeier said, “I can’t tell you how many times I walked back and forth to make sure it looked perfect.”
Korben showed up at Marksmeier’s door with only a tote of his belongings and a small chip on his shoulder. He had become used to staying somewhere and being moved, with no chance to grow roots.
The first step towards building trust came with Marksmeier noticing Korben’s worn-out shoes, which were causing him discomfort. Marksmeier remembers saying:
“‘Korben, as soon as we are done signing this with your case worker, we are going straight to Scheel’s and getting you new shoes.’”
As Korben settled into the home, Marksmeier focused on strengthening their relationship and creating a sense of stability. With encouragement and support, Korben earned honor roll at school, an achievement that once seemed out of reach. The two also traveled to Florida together, giving Korben the opportunity to experience things he never had.
The trip offered a variety of new experiences for Korben. From water parks and rides to trying new foods and meeting new people. Eventually, he found himself overwhelmed and wanting to go home.
“He was so overwhelmed he just let it all out and he wanted to go home,” Marksmeier said. “I don’t think that when I was in foster care, I was ever homesick, never once in any home. That’s when I realized Korben’s not going anywhere.”
Shortly after the trip to Florida, Korben asked his case worker to have his parents’ rights terminated. Korben asked Marksmeier to adopt him.
Marksmeier understood the complexity of that request. In foster care, family reunification is typically the primary goal. However, sometimes circumstances lead to a different outcome. By that point, the bond between Marksmeier and Korben had grown strong. Marksmeier offered Korben something the child had never known before: safety, stability and encouragement.
Today, Marksmeier and Korben have officially been a family for two and a half years. Marksmeier said he can’t imagine life without Korben.
“Biology doesn’t make a family, it’s how you look at each other and the compassion, caring and it’s unconditional,” Marksmeier said. “Where you can come home and feel safe and not worry about what somebody else thinks. That to me is family.”
While his foster parenting journey is on pause for now, Marksmeier said CSI was with him every step of the way.
“Realizing that there’s a big, huge community out there to assist with [fostering] and it’s not just, ‘Here you go, do your best, don’t call us.’ It’s not like that,” Marksmeier said.
The experience not only helped Marksmeier build a family but also inspired him to encourage others to consider fostering.
“Anybody who thinks about foster parenting, just do it. If you like it, great. If not, don’t renew your license,” Marksmeier said with a laugh and a smile.
As Marksmeier thinks about his life now with Korben, he finds it hard to believe how everything turned out.
“Sometimes, I wonder if it’s a dream and I’m just going to wake up,” Marksmeier said. “But then I have somebody come in and poke me and tell me to get up.”
Want to see the impact you could make as a foster parent? Visit CSI’s foster parent page to learn more.
