The foster care center, which moved to West Chester Twp. in May, is a passion for the couple because they were a foster family for three years and saw firsthand the struggle that vulnerable children face.
“We also saw that there is a large presence of people who lacked awareness regarding foster care, as well as those anxious to help yet not knowing a simple, tangible way to get involved,” Krista Lorenz said.
Since its inception in 2013, Warm Welcomes has provided local partner agencies more than 870 welcome bags filled with comfort and necessity items. In 2015 alone, the organization has packaged and delivered 622 welcome bags.
“Trash bags are a bit of an icon in the foster care world because children often must place their few belongings in one as they are removed from their home or placements,” Lorenz said. “This is an unacceptable insult to a hurting child and we feel that as a community we can change that.”
Warm Welcomes also has hosted five Welcome Parties, where foster families are invited for a free, fun event at a local venue. That’s included everywhere from Skatetown USA in West Chester and Niederman Family Farm in Liberty Twp. to the Mason Community Center and a Dayton Dragons game.
The quarterly events continue to grow and around 200 adults and children attended the October event, Lorenz said.
Volunteers prepared “Welcome While You Wait” bins filled with snacks, drinks, baby needs, and small activities to four local agencies. The bins are designed to provide children with a small snack or distraction while having to wait in an office for placement. Many times, case workers have had to seek out a vending machine to feed a child who is hungry, Lorenz said.
In December, Warm Welcomes will host Christmas Give Shops for the second year, providing children an opportunity to “shop” for and wrap a gift to give away to someone they care about. More than 200 children participated last December.
“The Give Shop serves to offer a sense of empowerment to children when given the chance to give back to others,” Lorenz said.
Despite all its success, the all-volunteer organization struggles mightily to meet the great need for Welcome Bags across Butler, Warren and Hamilton counties, she said.
“We have grown our support of children in foster care, with our Welcome Bags, by over 300 percent from 2014 to 2015 and we still have not met the need of all the agencies in the counties we serve,” she said. “We need further grant support and corporate sponsorship to reach our goals and to expand our services,” Lorenz said.
A recent $10,000 grant from Power of the Purse Women’s Giving Circle is “truly a blessing,” she said.
“The grant will help pay for all the materials we need to pack the bags for the entire year,” Lorenz said. “Our annual budget was $12,000 a year, so this grant will help us operate for the year. It will also allow us to continue to work toward meeting the entire demand of the counties we serve and expand our other outreach services to serve more children.”
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