Beloved Bulletin
Go Team
Beloved!
Beloved community, you are amazing! Already in 2024, we’ve reached a wider circle of displaced kids with supplies, support, and messages of hope! Last year opened doors for Beloved in several counties statewide. As social workers moved from Beloved- supported offices to new areas, they carried our mission alongside a passion for affirming dignity in every young life. As a result, several DCS offices, placement agencies, and triage homes have reached out to request Beloved Bags, which we are honored to provide. You’ve enabled us to:
• Create thousands of high-quality, fully- stocked duffle bags and kits for multi- cultural hair care, feminine hygiene, and birthday celebrations.
• Renovate play rooms and stock snacks for children who arrive hungry at DCS offices
• Provide presents for kids who enter care during the holidays
In the months ahead, we look forward to the launch of Trauma Town (see p. 2), a trauma- informed care website that will connect care- givers with resources to support kids who have faced unimaginably difficult days, plus our fourth annual Foster and Kinship Care Day in the Park. None of these projects or events would be possible without your generous gifts of time, talent, and resources. Thank you for all you’ve done. We look forward to the many ways we’ll care for vulnerable kids together!
—Amy Linnemann, Executive Director
Save the Date
...and Share Your Support
Our 4th Annual Foster and Kinship Day in the Park will be Saturday, May 11, at Donner Park. Below is a list of ways to support this remarkable event.
Volunteer: Assist with set-up and clean-up, as well as running carnival-type games, helping at various booths, restocking food items, checking in guests, etc.
Gift Baskets: Individuals or groups can contribute a gift basket (or components) for our foster families and social workers with items from your business, a gift card, or a themed basket (e.g., such as movie night with DVDs, popcorn and box candies; travel items; outdoor play games—or any other creative ideas!).
Spread the Word: Information will soon be available via Beloved’s social media pages for this event.
Please “like” and share our posts so we can serve as many families as possible.
Foster Family Recruitment: We’re planning a lunch- and-learn for those wanting to understand the process of becoming a foster parent or respite provider. Please consider sharing this information within your business or church community.
To learn more about these opportunities, email Stephanie Morrissey (connect@belovedbags.org).
Packing It In: Big News from Beloved
KPIT Packing Event
Thank you, KPIT, for the time and energy your crew spent packing 180 feminine hygiene kits for displaced girls entering foster/kinship care. Your care has made a meaningful difference in so many lives!
Countdown to the Big Launch
Check out belovedbags.org on March 1 as we plan to launch Trauma Town, a website dedicated to connecting caregivers working with displaced and vulnerable kids to community– and state-wide resources. Volunteer IT professionals from Cummins, Multiply Technology and KPIT have devoted countless hours over the past three years to develop this important platform, and their work will impact the lives of so many precious children in coming years by equipping the adults who serve them.
Help Us Help Kids (& Help You, Too!)
Donations and Volunteers Needed for Upcoming Events
We’ve heard time and again from our community partners that helping just feels good...so we want to spread the love and offer you that same opportunity! Beloved has a number of upcoming events and business needs that you may be able to support, like:
Whale of a Sale, April 12-14, 2024
If you are a foster/kinship family, stay tuned to the WOAS website/Facebook page plus our Beloved Facebook page for information on how to register to get a ticket for the free shopping. If you’re contributing items, please hang onto your kid-appropriate donations—we need them! Beloved will be a “consignor” for these events, earning money for all such donations that then goes back into supporting our programs. Watch this space and our website for details on 2024 event dates and needs. Generally speaking, we can always use children’s gear for all ages (e.g., strollers, wagons, bikes, accessories, and toys— clean and in working order.)
Opportunities for the Administratively & Creatively Gifted
People often ask how they can support our mission. We have multiple needs for varying talents—making calls, wrapping gifts, gathering donations, applying for grants, providing administrative or accounting support, etc. For details, contact volunteer coordinator Darla Aker (volunteer@belovedbags.org)
Finally: Beloved’s work depends on funding from generous donors like you! Give online (belovedbags.org) and your contributions will be tax-deductible; 100% of every dollar donated
goes directly toward caring for kids in crisis.