Karyn and Woo Rainey of Christiansburg have adopted eight children out of foster care. The Raineys had a booth at Thursday’s farmers market to raise money for the Rainey 13 Foundation to be used for scholarships for foster children. Pictured (L to R) are Brailynn, Cameron, Karyn Rainey, Bryton, Bryson, October and Albree.
Karyn and Woo Rainey were at the Christiansburg Farmers Market Thursday with a lemonade stand and an ulterior motive: All the money from their sales went toward establishing the Rainey 13 Foundation.
Since 2012, the Christiansburg family has taken in nine foster children. They have adopted eight of them and have adoption of the ninth child pending.
“Once the kids are in our home and we see that they are a good fit for our family, then they stay with us,” Karyn said.
The Rainey 13 Foundation is an effort by the couple to help foster children and adopted children get into college.
“We hope to offer scholarships to foster children and adopted children who normally wouldn’t meet the criteria for college,” Karyn said. “We would also buy the first pair of tennis shoes upon coming into care. Every one of the nine adopted kids that came to us needed shoes.”
Her hope is also to buy laptops for the children.
“We would like to help kids who have been through trauma and a rough life, letting them know that someone does care for them,” she said.
The extended Rainey family participated in “Kids’ Entrepreneur Day” Thursday at the Christiansburg Farmers Market with their own version of the great American lemonade stand. In addition to lemonade and iced tea, the family had baked goods for sale.
The Christiansburg Farmers Market is held every Thursday from 3 to 7 p.m. on Hickok Street.
More than 5,500 children are in foster care in Virginia. Current statistics from the Montgomery County Department of Social Services show 53 percent are boys and 47 percent are girls.
Approximately 1,700 of the foster children are waiting for adoptive families.
