‘A piece of you is missing’: Foster alum Bethany shares how Treehouse changed her life
Dec 10, 2025, 2:00 PM
Headshot of 29-year-old Bethany Neubath-Rios over a graphic of KIRO Newsradio and Treehouse's Holiday Magic. (Photo courtesy of MyNorthwest)
(Photo courtesy of MyNorthwest)
“Being in foster care, I did not have the best foster parents,” Bethany Neubath-Rios, a former foster child. “I grew up in a very chaotic, not the safest, foster home. It feels like a piece of you is missing.”
For Bethany Neubath-Rios, now 29 years old, childhood was not a particularly memorable time. She and her sisters, Winter, Rachel, and Arrianna, were all forced into foster care at a very young age. She had little, if any, contact with her birth parents, and she was separated from two of her sisters.
“It’s also disheartening for me and my siblings. We were separated into twos, so it was Winter and my older sister Rachel, and then it was me and my younger sister Arrianna,” Bethany shared. “We were put in vastly different homes, so I think it really impacted us later on in life too, just in terms of like our personalities and how we were raised differently.”
Bethany said she struggled and dropped out of school in the seventh grade. She later returned to school to earn her GED. For that, she gives a lot of the credit to Treehouse, which provides not only the essentials, but also childhood experiences every child should have.
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The influence Treehouse had on Bethany
“It would be incredibly different without the Treehouse help, without the incentive plans,” Bethany said. “I don’t think I would be where I am today without all the Treehouse programs that I took advantage of.”
These days, Bethany works as a nanny for two families. She loves kids.
“I think a big part of why I decided to be a nanny is because, as a child in foster care, I took care of kids, and so it gave me the love and passion for it,” Bethany said. “I like to give kids good experiences that I didn’t necessarily have as a kid.”
And Bethany said she doesn’t want to give birth to children of her own. Foster care expanded her idea of what is possible, what is sorely needed in the foster care system, and what is best for society.
“I just think foster kids get overlooked, especially older ones,” Bethany said. “We should take care of the kids that are already born and are in the system, versus going through other methods, if that makes sense, and so that’s why I decided I don’t want to have biological children. I’d much rather be a foster parent with goals of reunification toward parents, or adoption if that’s the last resort.”
Holiday Magic seeks to make the holidays brighter for children and youth in foster care by providing them with one meaningful holiday gift. The program is made possible through a 30-year partnership with Washington’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) and tribal courts. Volunteers, donations, and foster parents are always needed.
You can help by going to Treehouse. If you are currently struggling in foster care, Bethany shared some words of encouragement and support.
“You will come across people, eventually, who really care about you and who will make an impact on your life,” Bethany said. “Even if it takes a little longer. I didn’t get adopted until I was an 18-year-old. I was already an adult. It’s never too late, and you will find your people.”
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