Story by Kevin Lyons - Photo by Paul Michna

CARY -- Foster and adoptive parents face unique challenge.

But, when parents and their children are of different races, they face a whole new set of issues.

The Rev. Michael J. Love, pastor of Trinity Baptist Community Church, doesn't think it has to be that way.

Love and members of his congregation believe in biblical methods of child rearing. He says if parents rise their child according to the word of God, race shouldn't be an issue.

But Love isn't naive. He knows race plays a big role in American society. Sometimes it even divides the Christian Church, but not at Trinity.

The five-year-old congregation is predominately African-American, but white families also call Trinity their home.

"We're part of a real large extended family, and that's how we feel when we're there," said church member Lori Switzer.

It's not just church talk, Switzer and her husband John lean on an African-American family from Trinity to help riase their 4 year-old African-American foster son.

Karl and Lori Wyatt agreed to act as African-American role model parents for the Switzers' foster son.

The Wyatts help them deal with the simplest probelms like skin and hair care and prepare them for future racial turbulence the boy might face in his adolescent years.

"We haven't really had anything yet because he is so young, but that's why we got into this program," Lori Switzer said. "we know there will be some problems with race relations in the future."

Barbara Hellmer, director of foster care at the Evangelical Child and Family Agency in Wheaton praised the Cary mentoring program.

"If a child is being placed transracially, it's important to make sure the family has all the tools they need to provide the best possible family life," Hellmer said.

She said it's important that the child has someone to trust that they can go to when identity questions come up during adolescent years.

"A lot of it is just basic caring and sharing and people not being afraid to step on each others' toes," Hellmer said.

Lori Wyatt said there's nothing unusual about her and her husband's ministry. She agrees with Love's belief that any strong family foundation comes from the Bible

"Our pastor is preaching from the word of God, and the word doesn't teach discrimination," Wyatt said.

But Wyatt said there are things they can provide for the Switzers' foster son.

They'll be there to act as role models -- to act as a support system. The Wyatts also provide the family with books on black history and will be able to share their own family experience with the child.

"I think it has some significance," Wyatt said. "Once he is school age and able to pick up some of the comments other kids are making, it will make a lot of difference."

Love said he has tremendous admiration for white families who adopt black children.

"They really are stepping outside of their own security net -- loving children of another race. That's not something everyday people just do. That takes someone with a very large heart," Love said.

The program arose from a simple need as these issues came up for church families. Ten families are involved in mentoring relationships.

"It's a very sensitive issue. They find themselves dealing with an adversarial relationship with a social worker who wants to put the child with a black family," Love said.

"There are doubts you would have. People say you can't raise a black child because you haven't had the black experience, but love has a way of crossing all kinds of barriers and crashing down all kinds of walls. A child grows from that kind of love," he added,

That's the kind of love black and white families experience at Trinity Baptist Church.

"I would say it's probably been the most comforting, rewarding, spiritual part of our lives," Switzer said.

Shirley Polk of Crystal Lake, IL. also values her relationship with the Trinity family and has found the mentoring program, which began in August, very helpful.

"I was excited because it's something that we as foster/adotive parents have needed for a long time," she said.

The Polks have four adopted children ages 7, 6, 5 and 3. Two of the children are black and four are biracial.

"Having a mentoring family to fall back on makes life a lot easier," she said.