Building a Community of Foster Homes and Families with Justin and Sarah Oberndorfer

Justin and Sarah Oberndorfer are the Co-founders and foster parents at Joy Meadows, a foster care community of homes built to house children in single-family homes in the state of Kansas. They have had numerous foster children in their home along with their five children.

Sarah is an attorney while Justin is a high school teacher, pastor, and Executive Director of Joy Meadows. They founded Joy Meadows in Leavenworth County, Kansas, which currently lies on a 53-acre estate. They have animals, an orchard, a garden, a community center, and plans to build up to 11 single-family homes.

In this episode…

With a desire to build a community of multiple foster homes in Leavenworth County, Kansas, Justin and Sarah Oberndorfer raised enough money to purchase a 23-acre piece of property. Their dream was to provide foster care to as many kids as possible in that region. However, what they did not anticipate is opposition from the town. The residents at the time did not understand what the couple was up to and due to misconceptions, fought against them.

Through perseverance and an unexpected article being published about the opposition, the couple received tremendous support from foster communities in other states. They went to court and had a lot of people testifying and advocating for their foster home, and in the end, they were allowed to proceed with their plans. Later, they also ended up getting a donation for a road leading to the home and an additional 30 acres to build Joy Meadows, which is now a thriving community of foster homes.

In this episode of the I Am Home podcast, hosts Tyler Wisecup, Becca Sudbeck, and Hilary Woltemath sit down with Justin and Sarah Oberndorfer, the Co-founders of Joy Meadows, to talk about providing a home for foster kids and building a supportive community. They also discuss the obstacles they faced starting Joy Meadows, raising funds, being foster advocates, and how Nebraska Furniture Mart has been supporting them.