TAMPA, Fla. — After a high-risk pregnancy and limited resources to take care of her child, a local mother found a non-profit offering short-term child care and other help for families lacking support.
Amy Zlata’s newborn, Freya, ended up in the Natal Intensive Care Unit following her pregnancy.
Her husband needed to go to work, and they couldn’t find an option for someone to watch their son, Shyne.
“They were trying to put him in foster care while I was in the hospital. And I was like, no, that’s not going to work for me,” said Amy. “It’s not a bad home. I have a happy, loving home. I just need some help with child care.”
But then Amy discovered the non-profit organization Better Together, with one of its goals being to keep kids out of Florida’s already stretched-thin foster care system.
“There’s so many situations where parents do end up losing their kids because of that lack of support. And so if we can step in. And these families that do this, they are just regular families in the community that want to help bridge the gap,” said Better Together Vice President Isis LaRose.
The Washburn family volunteered for Better Together, and after background checks, they took in Shyne so Amy could focus on her baby.
“If you can avoid to lose your kids and just take the time that you need. So I thought we could help,” said Roseli Washburn.
Better Together said they can always use more volunteers as Hillsborough County is number one in the state for kids in foster care.
Amy said Freya is home and doing much better, and Shyne enjoyed his time with the Washburns.
“It was really emotional. It was a relief knowing that my family was close and he wasn’t going into foster care. It was basically like an extended family,” she said.
They all plan to keep in touch.
“The connection. The bond that we have now is unbreakable,” said Amy.
