Support a Child in Foster Care this Christmas
As you prepare for Black Friday and Christmas shopping, would you consider supporting a child in foster care this Christmas season? While adding things to your Amazon cart, how about adding a couple extra things, just for him? Foster care and adoption are needs that always weigh heavy on my heart, especially this time of year. While a child in foster care may be used to receiving hand-me-downs, how wonderful would it be to receive something new?
Today I want to share about a foster situation and how you can easily help! This little boy has been in foster care and recently placed in his fourth home. In addition to coming to the home with no material possessions, he has special educational needs that need to be overcome.
Foster Care Challenges and Needs
If you are unfamiliar with how the foster care system works, it’s not uncommon for kids to be moved around to different homes for various reasons. When a child is first put into foster care, they are sometimes provided with basic supplies (clothes, car seat, crib, etc.), but not always. They are supposed to receive these things, but many times delays happen and a foster family may wait months. There are some differences between agencies and states, but from the foster families I know, this is pretty normal.
When a child has been in the system for a while, they may have moved around from home to home with a garbage bag filled with a few belongings. Many times these things are in such bad shape, they are not worth keeping or safe to bring into a new home. Foster families receive some financial assistance, but when an emergency placement happens, there are no resources provided up front. You are given whatever little items the child may own, which is sometimes just the clothes on their back. Financial support or other resources may not become available for a month or so after the placement.
How You can help
Not everyone is in a position where they can become a foster parent. But the need is great for people who will support and care for children in foster care and their foster families. If you can’t foster, consider supporting someone who can! Ask them what their needs are. Offer to deliver a meal or provide babysitting for a night off.
Today I am sharing an Amazon Wish List for the sweet, 7 year old boy that our good friends have taken in this month. They have had multiple placements over the past several years, and each child has come to them with very little personal belongings. This little boy came with absolutely nothing to his name. Would you consider helping make his Christmas a little extra special? Use the link here to add items to your cart on Amazon. The address will be hidden, but Amazon will make sure it gets to the right address! I asked this family to include gift cards on their Wish List as well as meal cards.
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