GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A smart, determined, sometimes thrill-seeking teen, looking for a family to spend quality time with.
FOX17 continues our Forever Home series, finding families for kids in Michigan’s foster care system.
We spent an afternoon with Marissa at Gymco Sports doing her favorite sport: Gymnastics.
Between mastering cartwheels and navigating the balance beam, 13-year-old Marissa can’t help but smile.
She said she loves watching team USA at the Olympics and sharing what she knows about the sport.
Marissa said, “I can teach my friends how to do it."
She has a whole lot of other interests too.
“I like to do basketball and football and I color read, and draw," Marissa said.
When it comes to reading, Marissa said there’s nothing like a good mystery book.
"I like how you don’t know what's going to happen, it always throws you to read more, she said, “That’s why I always read for three hours, because I lose track of time."
Marissa is also a big fan of rap and hip-hop.
She said, “It’s fun to listen to and it can sometimes be sad, but it’s mostly nice to get the happy part out of you."
She’s very strong in math, and said she wants to be a nurse when she grows up.
“I’ve always wanted to help people out and care for them, like people do for me."
Her biggest wish right now, is to find a family to be there for her.
She said, “I’d like a family that is caring and safe and cares for me and has rules. They do stuff with us, where if I’m the only kid, they do stuff with me, they don’t just leave me by myself or just don’t leave me feeling down."
Marissa said it wouldn’t matter what her family does, as long as they do it together.
“Go to the movies, eat together, play outside, play games together, have movie nights, stuff like that. Even clean the house together. It would make me feel happy and cared for."
If you’re interested in learning more about Marissa or the adoption process, visit Orchard's Children's Services.
