Helping others comes naturally for Mark and Angela Matson.
Mark is the mission’s pastor for First Baptist Church in Peachtree City and Angela has a background in hospice care as a social worker. Their other calling from God is to help children of all different ages and situations.
The Matsons are foster parents through Fayette County’s Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS). Besides having two biological children of their own, they have fostered more than 30 children during the last 12 years in Florida and Georgia.
Mark was involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes program at a local Florida school. Louis was a student who came to the Bible studies as he was a football player. His home life was not good and at 14 years old, he moved in with the Matsons. Even though he was not a foster child, they loved and nurtured him until he graduated and they are still a part of his life.
Louis is now an emergency room physician.
The Matsons didn’t stop there and decided they wanted to adopt a child from another country as their mission work had taken them around the world. After traveling to the Ukraine, with hopes and dreams of adopting, they came home without a child as the ability to adopt was suddenly closed which left them disappointed.
They still felt that God had a plan. He may have closed this door but another one opened.
After a member of their church in Florida who was a foster parent introduced them to a baby she was caring for, the Matsons turned to DFCS and began the next step of becoming foster parents. They have adopted three of the children they have fostered and they are currently fostering a seven-month-old baby.
Georgia has about 14,000 children in the state’s foster care program and only 3,500 families. These children did not get to pick their parents or their situation. They just need some love, attention and a chance. More families are desperately needed right here right now.
Fayette County DFCS is having an Informational Night scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 17, at 6 p.m. at the office at 905 Hwy. 85 in Fayetteville. Anyone interested in learning more about fostering or adoption is invited to attend.
