“If I had a magic wand, I’d make sure that the moment a family receives a child into their care, that they would know to call Fostering Hope,” said Sandy Lee, Fundraising Coordinator for Fostering Hope Lower Bucks. For a child of any age, placement in an unfamiliar environment with strangers can be uncomfortable and scary. No matter how well-prepared the foster family may be when a call comes, those first several days can be especially difficult for both the child and the foster family.

Bucks County Children and Youth Social Services Agency ensures children are free from abuse and neglect by placing them in foster care. For the child and the foster family those first days are made more manageable with the help of Fostering Hope Lower Bucks, the ninth of eleven chapters of the Montgomery County-based organization. To ease the transition during placement, Fostering Hope founders were inspired to create the Foster-Share Closet. When Sarah Burstein and Jenae Travia were looking to donate baby gear in 2023, they noticed that the closest chapter was in Upper Bucks County—not convenient for families in Lower Bucks, nor caseworkers responsible for children requiring immediate placement sometimes in the middle of the night. This prompted them to start Fostering Hope Lower Bucks out of Travia’s garage.

Staffed only by volunteers, the chapter later moved into a rented storage unit as donations grew. By 2024, it became clear that they were also outgrowing the storage unit. Further, it did not provide a sense of comfort or dignity for the families and children it was serving. Still, in its first year the chapter served 104 children in foster care. A grant from Foundations Community Partnership helped Fostering Hope Lower Bucks to fulfill the need for a more welcoming and dignified space in which to have a Foster-Share Closet filled with new and nearly new clothing and gear. Its low-key entrance in the rear of the Newtown Depot Shopping Center leads to an organized place where families can choose items they need. The new location gave Fostering Hope Lower Bucks a boost and by the close of 2024 they served children on 500 occasions, an impressive year-over-year increase.

Donations of new items are a gift that help the child better fit in with peers and give them a sense of dignity. “This,” said Lee, “is like the butterfly effect.” When a child feels confident in the clothes they wear, they approach other people in a positive way. Fostering Hope’s mission is to empower youth experiencing foster care, and to nurture families and restore dignity to every child that they serve. This is exemplified by its four-pronged approach including Dignity Duffles, Bags of Hope, Fostering Phones, and the Foster-Share Closet. These go a long way toward enabling a brighter future for every child whether they are cared for by a foster family or kinship arrangement.

In the few minutes during which children are removed from their home, industry practice has caseworkers provide a plastic trash bag for the child to gather their belongings. Take a moment to imagine yourself in that circumstance. The things most precious to you in an already stressful, traumatic situation are rendered no more important than this week’s garbage. Fostering Hope changes that indignity by providing caseworkers with Dignity Duffles, small carry bags like those you might take to the gym or on an overnight trip to give to the child instead. “What’s heartwarming to me when I’m packing a Dignity Duffle for a caseworker to give… I think of all the people whose hands went into it from the person who donates the bag and each of those who filled it,” said Travia. “It makes you realize there is a lot of kindness in the world.”

Bags of Hope, small drawstring backpacks filled with age-appropriate comfort gifts and personal items, help children navigate the first several days. Fostering Phones is an initiative dedicated to providing a free cellphone, case, and one year of cellular service to teens 14-21 in foster care. These enable older youth to apply for jobs, communicate with peers, and maintain connections with family and friends. And for many it is their only access to school assignments, materials, and grades.

To volunteer, donate, or get more information about Fostering Hope Lower Bucks, call (267) 291-4343, visit the web site, or e-mail LowerBucks@fosteringhopepa.com.