Last night I had the opportunity to attend a charity event to benefit Help One Child (HOC), the JLPA-MP's community partner on our Fostering Families community project. League members Joy Peacock (Community VP 2010-11) and Michele Bilafer (The Shop Committee 2010-11) generously hosted a table at this event and I jumped at the opportunity to hear more about one of our relatively new community partners.
Joy and Michele have a history with the League's relationship with Help One Child, as they were on Project Development and helped bring Help One Child on as our community partner. They also helped develop the project (along with HOC) that we now call Fostering Families.
Sustaining member Mary Marsh also attended this event and she has a history with Help One Child as well. She was a volunteer with the organization prior to HOC's relationship with our League.
Says Mary, "It was a nice evening with League members. I volunteered for six and a half years with Help One Child. I believe that helping children with their issues when they are young will keep them out of jail in the future. I am so glad our Junior League supports this group."
League Members at Help One Child event: Summer Brill (Social Media 2010-11), Joy Peacock (Community VP 2010-11), Michele Bilafer (The Shop Committee 2010-11), Mary Marsh (Sustainer Director 2010-11), Meaux Costello (President Elect 2010-11)
It was a well organized event and we had the opportunity to hear from the founders of Help One Child, Mark and JoAnne Morris. We also heard special guest testimonies from a woman who was a foster child along with her sister. She is now a newly licensed foster parent herself. We also heard from a woman who became a guardian to her relative's infant at a time when she was young and did not have the resources to adequately care for a newborn. She shared how Help One Child stepped in to help her through the legalities of her situation, as well as provided the basic necessities and parent training for her in her new role.
The League's Fostering Families M-Power program was also highlighted.
It was a very moving experience and I really enjoyed hearing more about a program our League is involved with. May is National Foster Care Month and there are still six DIAD spots available for the May 9th Fostering Families M-Power workshop. If you have not yet fulfilled your DIAD requirement, you want to preview Fostering Families for a future placement or you just want to give back to your community, this is a great opportunity. I did it in February and really enjoyed it!
If you want to learn more about our League's Community Projects, click here.
If you volunteered for a DIAD/Fostering Families workshop and want to send us a blog post about your experience, email socialmedia@thejuniorleague.org.
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