The 5th Annual Foster Kid Gift Drive is beginning. I am working with the Bucks County Children & Youth Social Services Agency and other local foster families for this drive. They provided me with a list of children that are in their foster homes so that we can buy personal gifts for these kids.
Why help foster children during the holidays? I was a foster child from the age of 13 to 18. I moved to a new home every 3 to 6 months and it was an incredibly lonely, devastating, destructive and a depressing time of my life. It was very rare that anyone ever cared about me. For Christmas, I often did not receive anything at all or my foster family used my clothing allowance to buy me my presents. The worst part was that my family was celebrating the holiday with my stepfather who molested me, while I was with these strangers that rarely seemed to care. So, I know what it’s like to not be thought about during a time when all the kids I knew were being pampered.
These gifts are not simply things. They are signs that someone took the time to think about them. The gifts are reminders – reminders that someone somewhere does care. Children need to know that they are thought about and cared about. This is beneficial for their emotional and mental states which affect them for the rest of their lives.
About the children
These children are in the foster care system. This means they are usually not living with their blood relatives (or at least this is rare). From one reason or another, these children are unable to live with their families. They may have been abused or in dangerous situations at home. Their parents may have died and they have not been adopted. There are many situations and reasons why they are placed in foster care. Usually, these reasons are not positive. So, they certainly need extra care and attention.
These children can be between the ages 2 years old to 18 years old.
If you want to help
Donate a Gift:
If you are interested in helping, please either call me at 267-266-6480, email me at joanne@joannecipressi.com or fill out the form below. Then, I will send you the first name, size, age, and wishes of your child. We need all gifts by December 15th, so I can deliver them to the center in time. This gives the caseworker enough time to deliver the gifts in time for the holiday.
Give a monetary donation:
If you are unable to help out with shopping for gifts, but would like to donate financially, you may do so. My daughters and I will shop for a child for you. Afterwards, we will send you the first name, age and pictures of the gifts so you know where your money went. You can use this donation button to make a donation through PayPal:
If donating through the donate button, please include your email address and phone number so I can thank you and send you the pictures.
I created a Gift List through Amazon for those that are too far away to drop off a gift here in Bucks County. Here is the link: Foster Kid Christmas Gift Drive. Once I receive you gift, I will wrap it and add your name to it, unless you want to remain anonymous.
Thank you in advance for helping!! Any questions, comments, or know any child that is in need of some love this holiday season, fill out the form below:
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