Christian Bale Breaks Ground on California Foster Home Facility: ‘We Must Help’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Christian Bale broke ground on a twelve-home foster care facility earlier this month, a project he has been fighting to bring to life for nearly 20 years.
Bale became aware of the foster home crisis in L.A. in 2005 after the birth of his first child. Because of the overburdened system, many siblings are separated.
“I found myself trying to imagine what it would be like if [my wife and I] weren’t around,” Bale said. “At the same time, I was doing all-night searches for what was going on in L.A. proper and where we could help.”
“I was stunned and mad to learn that we have more foster kids than anywhere else in the country. I was also kicking myself for not knowing that before, so I thought, ‘Well, this is it. Let’s focus on this,’” he continued. “My wife and I decided that we were going to do everything we could in our power to change that.”
“Imagine the absolute pain and the trauma of losing your parents or being torn from your parents, and then losing your brothers and sisters on top of that,” Bale added. “That’s no way to treat kids. And so, we will be the hub for that. I hope that this village will be the first of many, and I hope that people, Californians and Angelenos, know to come join us in opening our eyes to what’s happening right under our noses. These are our children, and we must help our children.”
Naively, Bale thought he would make an impact on the system quickly. However, despite his resources and connections, it has taken him nearly two decades to finally see some of his work come to fruition.
“I didn’t think it was going to take that long,” he said. “I had a very naive idea about kind of getting a piece of land and then, bringing kids in and the brothers and sisters living together and sort of singing songs like the Von Trapp family in THE SOUND OF MUSIC.”
“But I discovered no, it takes an awful long time and really well-motivated people,” Bale said. “It’s complicated and tough to help kids. It should be…a lot easier than it was but I didn’t flinch for one second.”
“It’s way more complex. These are people’s lives. And we need to be able to have them land on their feet when they age out,” he added. “There’s so much involved in this.”
The facility will include 12 homes and a community center, as well as two studio flats to help those transitioning into independent living. The foster care center will be situated 60 miles north of Hollywood in Palmdale, CA, and construction is expected to finish in 2025.
Movieguide® previously reported on fostering:
The Tyler family is welcoming their newest adopted son, Samuel, to the family and expressing gratitude to the mother who dropped him off in a safe haven box at a local firehouse.
The baby boy was dropped off at the firehouse with a note that said, “I love you.” After seeing a news story about the baby boy, the Tyler family felt called to pursue his adoption.
“There was a news article that was posted online the day that he was surrendered, and I read that article, and I told Chris about it and prayed all weekend that we would be the foster home called to take him, and so that was a Thursday,” Brittany Tyler told The Story. “On Monday afternoon I got the call asking if we would be available to take him, and we said yes, and we were able to start visiting him in the hospital the very next day.”
“I remember holding him in my arms and knowing right off the bat, ‘This is my boy. This is the next member of our family,’” Chris Tyler shared.
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