Together with our partners, we strive to for area families in need of support.
Our HOPE is that the children and the families we serve will feel SEEN, LOVED & VALUED by their community in their time of need.
Background:
In any given year, there are about 350-400 Franklin County children ages birth through age 18 living in foster care settings, usually due to a history of abuse, neglect or trauma. Generally, these children transition into their new caregiver's home in the midst of a crisis. Oftentimes they leave all their personal belongings behind.
Families who volunteer to be foster parents never know exactly who will be in their home next and have little advance notice of a new foster child's impending arrival. They are likely to find themselves in immediate need of essentials for the child such as clothing, furniture and baby equipment.
As anyone who is a parent can attest, outfitting a baby, infant or child with needed clothing, furniture, bedding and supplies is an expensive and time-consuming undertaking. Many prospective foster parents could not afford this undertaking without support from the Missouri Children's Division and their community.
In addition to serving children and families IN foster care, we also work with referrals from Children's Division and therapists to help prevent entry into foster care and to help children return home my supporting reunification efforts.
Our 5 year Impact:
1,547 Individual Children Served (without duplicates)
3,148 Shopping Experiences
$411,277 Estimated value of items given out
The foster closet has grown each year since its inception in 2019, serving over 500 children each year since 2022!
In order for our children to reach their full potential, first their BASIC NEEDS must be met.
Physiological Needs: clothing, shoes, socks, underwear, beds & bedding, bottles, diapers
Safety Needs: carseats, medication lock boxes, baby gates, smoke & carbon monoxide alarms
In the short term - We meet the basic needs.
In the long term - Our kids feel a sense of belongingness (and seen by their community) and are able to focus on the higher tiers, hopefully reaching their full potential rather than focusing on their basic needs.
A raising tide raises all ships.
We hope you will partner with us and invest in the most vulnerable children in our community.
The Franklin County Foster Closet was founded in 2019. Our mission is to provide children’s clothing and other essential supplies to area families in need.
We began by serving foster and kinship families, but soon recognized other area families in need. We now serve foster families, kinship families, families who are at risk of losing custody of their children because they cannot afford to buy needed supplies for them and families who are regaining custody of their children after a period of separation.
We collect new and gently used essential children’s items from the community and distribute them to these families in need. We make the process of outfitting a home for a child simple, convenient and cost-free.
Simply put, we want to make sure that area families have the goods they need to provide adequately for the children in their care.
With the robust support of our wider community and a dedicated group of volunteers, we make life better for some of our area’s most vulnerable families and children.
Organization name
Franklin County Foster Closet
Tax id (EIN)
85-3624797
Mission/Purpose
Family Services/Child Welfare
Operating Budget
Micro: $50,001 - $250,000
Service Area
Franklin County, Jefferson County, Warren County
Audiences Served
People with Disabilities, Immigrants, Refugees, Foreign-Born Populations, Children, Youth, Families, Teens, BILPOC
Address
500 Clark Ave Suite H