Davey Tree Flipbooks

13 July/August 2020 | THE DAVEY BULLETIN Nationwide from 2000 to 2017, more than 1 million children entered the foster system due to their parents' drug addiction. For Caleb Yearout, contract utility forester, DRG, and his wife Jennifer, fostering youth affected by their parent's drug addictions became a life mission of sorts. Living in West Virginia – what some describe as the epicenter of the opioid crisis – the couple now has four children, all adopted out of the foster system. "The guys at work probably get annoyed with how much I talk about these kids," Yearout said. "But I'm a rich man because I have such a beautiful family. It's a lot of work but loving these kids and building them up is an amazing experience." Caleb Yearout and his wife Jennifer, along with Noah, 5, Kaitlyn, 13, Wyatt, 11, and Alexis, 9. FOSTERING HOPE Last year, Chris Cowles embarked on his sixth trip to the Guatemala capital city as part of the Guatemala Naomi Ministry. The main objectives of this small group ministry is to connect volunteers with a widow or family in need to develop a long term relationship with and see them through major life events like quinsiñera celebrations, funeral expenses, graduation ceremonies, sudden medical needs, tools for trade schools and more. Cowles, senior urban forester, Wetland Studies and Solutions, Inc., a Davey company, spent 10 days in country and made five trips to homes in red-zone areas within the capital of over four million, to check in on families, deliver aid and provide comfort. Red zones are designated for their high gang and criminal activity. There were so many life changing stories from the trip, but one has a Davey connection. For three years, Davey's During the trip to the Eco-Park, the family was treated to lunch with giant roasted tilapia and snail soup, a favorite among the native population. Four families, two from the U.S. and the other two from Guatemala, had the opportunity to bond. For more information about the Guatemala Naomi Ministry, visit their Facebook Page. DAVEY MATCHING PROGRAM BENEFITS GUATEMALAN FAMILY Over the years, the couple has fostered more than 20 children. They adopted their first son, Noah, while living in Virginia. And after moving to West Virginia, the couple fostered and later adopted three siblings, Kaitlyn, Wyatt and Alexis. "People who don't foster have no idea what these kids are going through. They've all got stories to tell and are just waiting to be loved," Yearout said. "We're a big advocate for adoption, but there's so many other ways to help kids in the foster system too." Matching Gift Program has made a big difference in the educational opportunities for a family's four children, ages 12-22. This family was taken on a high school graduation celebration trip across the beautiful, volcano studded countryside to a jungle Eco-Park with mountain spring fed swimming pools. This trip was bigger than Disney World as poor urban families in the capital can rarely afford to travel outside to experience their county's beautiful natural wonders. "Even though we don't share a common language or culture, over time we have developed a mutual love and trust for each other that goes beyond words," Cowles said.

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