A Mother’s Day tribute to foster moms across Saskatchewan

On Mother’s Day, we celebrate the women who raised us.

The ones who tucked us in, cheered us on and stood beside us through every season of life. In the lives of many children, that love comes from a foster mother. Someone who chooses to show up every day and create a sense of home.

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For Saskatoon’s Deb Davies, fostering was never meant to be a lifelong journey.

“I started fostering in 1981. I thought I knew everything. I was 22 years old,” she recalled.

At the time, she was raising a two-year-old child and a three-month-old baby of her own.

“Decided that I had room in my home, and I wanted to give back to my community,” she explained.

It was only supposed to be temporary, but twenty-five years and more than 50 kids later, Davies was still opening her home.

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Today, as executive director of the Saskatchewan Foster Families Association, Davies continues to advocate for children and families across the province.

She says her story is not just her own. It reflects the quiet, steadfast work of foster families everywhere.

There are thousands of children connected to Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Social Services — 4,160 as of December. That number includes children placed with extended family or within their communities.

Behind every one of those placements is a story, a transition, and often a foster parent helping to carry the weight.

For Davies, fostering was never about filling someone else’s role.

“It wasn’t that I was replacing a mom or a dad. I was co-parenting with the families,” she explained.

That mindset shaped everything. It meant building connections, offering stability and understanding that love can be shared, but not substituted. It also meant staying flexible in ways she hadn’t expected.

“The biggest thing you have to be is adaptable,” Davies noted. “You have to be able to open your home, your heart, but you have to be adaptable.”

She said every child arrives with a different story, a different set of needs and a different definition of family. Foster families meet them where they are and walk alongside them from there.

The work is not easy. Davies is honest about that.

“It’s probably one of the toughest things you’ll ever do, but it’s one of the most rewarding experiences,” she said. “I still hear from a number of the young women that I fostered. Those are the rewards that I get. They might not be instant rewards, but you get those rewards long term.”

Davies said a young woman she fostered years ago reached out to tell her what she remembered most: family dinners, barbecues and just being together.

“Those are simple things,” Davies said, her voice softening. “We were able to be a family together.”

That is the quiet magic of foster care. Not grand gestures, but everyday moments that become lasting memories.

The goodbyes are never easy, but they are often filled with pride.

“When a young woman is transitioning out at 21 years old to go out into her own, that’s a success story,” Davies said proudly.

And, in many cases, the connection between a child and their foster family never truly ends.

“I’ll always be there for her,” Davies said of a former foster daughter who still stays in touch. “I might not be there every day, but I will be there to support her when she needs that extra voice to tell her that she’s doing a wonderful job.”

This Mother’s Day, we celebrate the women who tuck children in, cheer them on and stand beside them through life’s seasons.

For many, that woman is a foster mother, and her impact often lasts far beyond the time a child spends in her home.