As we enter a season of gratitude and generosity, we’re reflecting on the transformative work that donors make possible in our community. Bloom Our Youth, a nonprofit organization located in Fayetteville, provides life-changing resources and wrap-around care to foster children and families in Fayette County and beyond each year. With the generous support of donors, partners, and volunteers, Bloom has been able to extend comfort, safety, and dignity to thousands of struggling children when they needed it most.
This year, the staff at Bloom has witnessed truly remarkable transformations—an abandoned baby with drugs in her system being paired with a top-notch therapeutic foster family, more than 6,000 foster children experiencing immediate relief through The Bloom Closet resource center, and distressed families finding the support system and training they need to achieve positive outcomes and make lasting changes in the lives of at-risk children. Bloom impacts the community through its many programs, including The Bloom Closet and The Bloom Closet Express, the Bloom Foster Care Program, and Bloom University.
The Bloom Closet, located in Fayetteville, and The Bloom Closet Express mobile store provide more than just tangible necessities to children who are the victims of abuse, neglect, and abandonment; the free clothing, supplies, and comfort items are delivered with dignity to meet the unique needs of every foster child. The entire “shopping” experience emphasizes the child’s individuality, and leverages every opportunity to help them build up their self-esteem. Each child is treated as an individual—not just a number in the system. Foster parents describe the program as “a life-saver,” and comment they are “forever grateful, thankful, and appreciative.” One foster parent explained, “When my foster children came into my care, they had one outfit, and not even in the correct size. Bloom provided immediate relief until I could figure out the process.”
In Bloom’s foster care program, Bloom recruits foster families and provides them with the training and support they need to successfully parent traumatized children. One way that Bloom supports foster families is through round-the-clock crisis support, which means foster parents get immediate support and expert guidance as they navigate some of life’s toughest moments. Through Bloom’s respite care program, foster families can receive the crucial time they need to rest and reset, thus ensuring their foster homes remain nurturing and strong. Bloom also provides holistic support for foster youth in the program, including tailored academic and emotional resources that help children overcome challenges and thrive in school and life.
Bloom impacts the community as a whole by offering foster parents and caregivers free evidence-based, trauma-informed training through Bloom University. These essential programs promote positive outcomes and equip foster parents and families with the skills to support and heal children in their care.
According to Bloom President & CEO, Becky Davenport, “Thanks to the unwavering support of our community, we’ve been able to expand our reach and provide more foster children the essentials they need to thrive.”
Davenport continues, “This year, a very generous donor has stepped forward for Giving Tuesday to challenge our community to match their donations dollar for dollar up to $10,000. We are very hopeful that this will be our most successful Giving Tuesday ever to help us raise much needed funds to support our programs!”
To donate to Bloom and help ensure that foster children have the love, care, stability and daily living essentials they need to thrive, visit https://bloomfosters.org/donate/.
