Auburn University's Athletics Director, Jay Jacobs, is an important person in Lee County. He is in charge of making crucial decisions in the athletic department for a major school in the Southeastern Conference. Many donors, players and coaches look to him for leadership and guidance. But one thing that some people maybe wouldn't realize about him right off the bat is that him and his wife, Angie, have been foster parents for almost eight years.
Angie was the first one to consider the idea of becoming involved in foster care when she had seen a local pediatrician and his wife fostering.
"Quite frankly, I didn’t give it much thought." Jacobs said. "She asked, and I said, ‘Yes!’ And we laugh about it today.”
The Jacobs' have three biological daughters who are 24, 21 and 18 years old. Currently, they have a 7-month-old boy living with them. He is an early riser and it has changed the dynamic and schedule of their home, but they wouldn't have it any other way according to Jacobs.
"Another child comes in and it’s a complete change," he said. "It’s really fun to see their personalities. It teaches you a lot about where people come from and different experiences. It really opens your eyes and gives you a lot broader view of the world."
Jacobs has made it clear that, for his family, foster care is not just something that they thought would be a fun thing to do. However, to them, it is a biblical commandment.
"It’s important to us to care for these children because biblically it tells us to do so that we’re supposed to care for the orphans and widows in our community and the world," he said. "We’re all called to help our neighbor and love our neighbor and that’s what we try to do in a very small way in fostering."
“What the Bible says is true," Jacobs said. "And when it tells us what we should be doing — and often times I fail miserably in what it tells me to do but because of God’s grace and my wife’s strong commitment, this is one thing — caring for orphans and widows is something that we can do in a very small way.”
Jacobs uses his platform at Auburn University as a way to encourage others in the community to consider foster care. By being on his side of fostering, he has also learned many things, but one specific lesson for him is seeing more about people's circumstances and where they come from.
"Because of the title that I have, it does give you a platform to talk about things that are meaningful and can help change children’s’ lives," Jacobs said. "We use this platform — use this opportunity to help create a better good, a better well-being and a better community for our children and our families and our community. It has really opened my eyes to understanding that people’s circumstances aren’t often dictated by them."
"We treat them like our own. From the minute they walk in our door we treat them just like they’re our children. They become a part of your life and a part of your everyday routine, and you learn to love them and we think a lot of time they learn to love us," he said.
