The Foster Kindern Project began in 2003 when I started to distribute the small, beaded doll-like figures to a few friends. The initial theme of the Foster Kindern Project was to make a comment about my opposition to the war in Iraq, asking individuals to be active participants in showing compassion for others human beings while “taking care of” or fostering a Kindern figure.

Each Kindern represented the innocent victims of the war…the children, men and women here in the states and abroad. The red cross sewn on each figure symbolized the false sense of security that I felt at that time (and continue to feel) that we are protected and secure in our country. I am confused as to what it really means to be “secure.”

Foster Kindern participants were asked to name and foster the figure given to them, take them along in their day to day life, or leave them in one place to act as a protective talisman. Participants documented the experience by taking photos, writing stories or by adding personal objects to the Foster Figures.

The Foster Kindern Project still continues today. As time passes, the theme of the project has changed and participation grows. The Foster Kindern have become a symbol of the everyday warriors and the potential we all have to make positive change in the world.