Catherine “Kay” Smith, Catherine Hodgkins, Kala Clark, and DHHS Commissioner Brenda Harvey with Gov. John E. Baldacci at the bill signing.

In April, 2006, the Maine legislature passed and Governor John E. Baldacci signed An Act to Support Sibling Rights in Child Welfare Custody Matters. The new law, which takes effect in early 2007, establishes the right of siblings separated as a result of child welfare placements to regular scheduled visits whenever "reasonable and practicable."

While the legislation was introduced by Baldacci, its originator was Kala Clark, now a senior at Mount Desert High School in Bar Harbor, Maine. Clark is heading to the University of Massachusetts at Amherst this fall to study political science.

She spoke with Connect for Kids' editor Susan Phillips recently about how her own struggle to stay close to two younger brothers was the driving force behind her campaign to give kids a legal right to spend time with their brothers and sisters.

CFK: When did you decide that the problem of sibling visits needed a legal solution?

Kala Clark: I was 12 years old when I went into care, almost 13. I have two younger brothers—they're 11 and 7, and they live in Southwest (Harbor, another town on Mount Desert Island). They are with my biological mother...

We had such a hard time getting visitations...And when I really started to understand that the visitations weren't going to happen, I thought that even though it wasn't ever going to happen for me, it wasn't right, and that other kids were having the same problem...It's a big system, things like that are going to happen. There was a policy that visitations should happen, but there wasn't really anything to back it up.

So at the time I decided that I really had to find a solution, I received a school assignment where I had to write a letter to a government official. It was perfect timing, really. I could use class time to learn about the different legislation that exists, and find laws to back up my reasoning.

I ended up writing to the governor, and he wrote back, and got me in touch with Karen Westburg. (Westburg was at that time director of the state's child welfare system.)

CFK: How did you proceed from that point?

KC: Karen Westburg put me in touch with Marty Zanghi and YLAT.

YLAT helped me with the next step, which was to locate other kids for whom sibling visits were important. That was really important because I had that reinforcement in my mind that it wasn't a lost cause, there were other kids who wanted to have this done too.

I had heard of other states with stronger policies. I read a lot about grandparents' visitation laws, and grandparents' rights—that was where a lot of my reading came from. It seemed that if grandparents had a right to visit grandchildren, then siblings should have a similar right.

I also used the basic democracy stuff: the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights.

CFK: What next? Did you approach local legislators for support?

KC: Not really...We started working on trying to word the legislation, figure out what the bill would look like. While we were working on that, an offer came up for me to present at a children's legal aid conference in Maine. That gave me a chance to speak about children's rights and why we needed legislation to support visitation for kids in foster care.

...From that, I was assigned to the Maine Legislative Youth Advisory County, and I worked with them to help develop wording for the bill.

The governor wound up introducing the bill himself, though I did talk to my local legislators about how important it was.

CFK: Any plans to try and encourage similar laws in other states?

KC: I hope we end up having similar legislation in all the states, and I would like to chart out what states currently have workable policies or legislation. But first I want to make sure the legislation here works out, make sure that people follow through with it. I hope they understand the importance of the sibling bond, especially for kids that have been through foster care and the situations that lead up to foster care.

I think in some respects, the impact is already being felt. Kids are really happy something is coming their way. Older ones who are dealing with the fact that they weren't able to see their brothers or sisters are really happy that other kids won't face that.

CFK: What was the hardest part of making this happen?

KC: The hardest part for me was the personal aspect, knowing how important it was, knowing how it has affected me. On one hand, it really helped me to let go. But it also brings me back to the pain I felt about being separated—day-to-day, I kind of forget the pain I felt. I remember at one presentation, some of the questions really brought up those feelings.

The kind of relationship I had with my little brothers before going into care, I really was responsible for them. It was a big change not to be responsible, not to think about all the things that they needed. And that responsibility really helps you get through the day. So when it was gone, it hurt.

CFK: Has the family you are with now been supportive?

KC: Very supportive. They are my family, and they have been incredible.