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‘All I want is someone to care for me’ | Wednesday’s Child 17-year-old wishes for a shot at a loving family

Roderick has been in foster care five years. He described what it’s been like moving from placement to placement.

DALLAS — WFAA first brought you the story of 17-year-old Roderick six months ago. He’s getting closer to aging out of the foster care system and is still in need of a forever family.

Below is our story from August 2022 when Roderick was 16: 

There are some incredible moments in life we never forget. For 16-year-old Roderick, one of those moments happened last week.

The Dallas Mavericks invited WFAA to tape his Wednesday's Child segment with them. It was definitely a moment in time. WFAA hopes it leads Roderick to his forever home. 

Sometimes life doesn't deal you the best cards. Roderick said you cannot choose what you get, but you can certainly choose how you play them. 

"I can't focus on the negativity. I gotta [sic] focus on the positive in my life. I play with the cards I'm dealt with," he said. 

They are words of wisdom from a young man with a slam dunk attitude. 

"I'm smart. I like to draw. I want to become an architect when I get older. I want to go to college at Texas Tech, and I want to be very successful in life. When I do, I want to help other kids just like me," said Roderick. 

He has been in foster care five years. He described what it’s been like moving from placement to placement. Sometimes, he says, there’s been no place to live.

"Hectic. Hard to find placements. It's hectic." 

Roderick got a shot to help him find a forever family when the Dallas Mavs invited him to tape his Wednesday’s Child story with them. Roderick has mad skills on the basketball court. 

He had fun showing Mavs CEO Cynt Marshall how to make a basket. He also got to shoot some hoops with new Mavs center Christian Wood. Wood was impressed with Roderick’s height. The 16-year-old is 5'11". 

“Wow, you're tall man. Wish I was that tall when I was your age," commented Wood. 

"It feel like a dream. I can't believe I'm here. I'm so excited. I'm nervous. I haven't smiled this much in a while," said Roderick. 

The Mavs gave Roderick a taste of what home could feel like. Wood offered Roderick words of encouragement, opening up about his own troubled childhood and how he never knew his father. 

Roderick absorbed all of it. He heard things he doesn't hear often. 

"My favorite part was when you said you see God in me, that really brightened me up," said Roderick, after WFAA's Cynthia Izaguirre told him she saw God in his heart.

No child should be starved of love and kindness, especially not someone as loving as Roderick. 

"All I want is someone to care for me," he said about the kind of family he wants to adopt him. 

If you think Roderick smiled a lot today, just wait until the day his advocates help score his forever family. 

For more information on how to adopt Roderick, please send all approved home studies to LaQueena Warren at LaQueena.Warren@dfps.texas.gov. Please remember to include Roderick’s names within the subject line. 

If you're not licensed, please visit adoptchildren.org to find out more information on how to become licensed to foster and/or adopt or contact LaQueena Warren at 817-304-1272.

Click here to read more Wednesday's Child stories.  

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