Coming Together for Foster Families
In honor of Foster Care Awareness Month, Tiny Type Studios teamed up with three local small businesses to donate totes, cosmetic bags and toiletries to the West Florida Foster Care Services' Empty Closet program, which provides clothing, supplies and more to support fostering families.
The idea began when we cleaned out one of our Adoptionly Yours product closets and found a box of sample totes and cosmetic bags. Recalling stories we had heard about foster kids traveling home to home with their belongings in garbage bags, we thought, maybe by emptying our closet, we could help fill another one.
When Janet Rinaldi, the leader of this local foster closet program, told us there was a great need for items for the kids coming into care with so little right now, the idea grew. What if we could fill the cosmetic bags with personal care items?
A few texts and calls later, the owners of New Identities Hair Studio were donating shampoo, conditioner and other styling products. Dr. Farina of Farina Orthodontic Specialists was giving us a whole box of toothbrushes and the dentists of Walker and Barr DMD were contributing boxes of toothpaste and anti-cavity mouth rinse for kids.
By the end, not only were the bags and boxes full, but also our hearts were overflowing with how fast the community came together for foster families and kids.
* * *
Marc, of New Identities, delivered a cart full of shampoo products to our door...
Stacy and Jayne packed up all the items...
The items were "lab inspected"...
...and delivered to Janet with a smile.
