[story by Rebekah Poling, Development Director, North Texas]
Playgroups are a great way to bring groups of parents and kids together on a regular basis—to have some fun and form friendships among both generations. Some parents and their kids in a playgroup in the Paloma Creek development east of Denton have made a regular commitment to reaching out to others through a service project during their regular monthly playgroup. The Paloma Creek club, aptly named “Kids Care,” chooses a different organization or project to support each month. Five to 10 kids, ages 2-10, participate on any given month. This gives the parents the opportunity to impart the wisdom and importance of community service to their children through leading by example. What a great way to model selflessness to their kids!
In July, the Kids Care group contacted me to see how they could bless the foster children we serve through Foster In Texas (FIT) in the North Texas area. They asked how they could help us nourish and support the area’s foster children and foster parents. Our foster children, who are fragile, hurting, neglected, or abused, most often come into our care with nothing but perhaps a sack full of old clothes and a toothbrush if they’re lucky. It’s unfortunately more common that the children arrive with nothing. We are always in need of hygiene products, toys, and school supplies.
The Kids Care group collected gently used stuffed animals, washed them, and sent them on to us with lots of love. We are able to distribute those sweet gifts to our foster children through the Dallas/Richardson foster care office, which directly serves the children from their area. The Paloma Creek kids also made a stack of beautiful thank-you cards for the staff at the LSS-FIT office. The caseworkers work tirelessly to make sure the children are placed in loving, supportive homes and that all their physical, educational, and emotional needs are met. The Paloma Creek parents were able to explain to their children how some kids don’t have mommies and daddies, so there are kind, compassionate people who find them families.
We hung the cards up at the office for all to see. The kids – and staff – were very blessed by the generosity of their community!
