This holiday season, Life 88.5 partnered with KVC, a nonprofit child welfare and behavioral healthcare organization, for the 4th year with their Holiday Heroes program. KVC’s Holiday Heroes Program is a way for individuals, families and businesses to work together to make the holidays brighter for children in foster care in Kansas City. This year a record 4,700+ wish list needed to be met, so children in foster care could have a Christmas. Life88.5 listeners stepped up in a big way, breaking the record, and meeting over 5,300 wish list needs during the holiday season!
Jackie Harwig, a CRS Supervisor for KVC Kansas shared this story about one foster parent, “I was a foster mom who was a recipient of the gifts for my (at the time, 3 foster) kids. It helped tremendously because we didn’t plan on accepting a sibling group placement, but we were told if we didn’t, they would all be split up and go to different homes. This was the saddest thing I have ever heard, so of course we accepted all 3. Three kids, who didn’t (literally) have underwear, socks, shoes, coats…after meeting their immediate basic needs, we could not afford Christmas gifts. The donation of gifts allowed our children to remain together, and for the first time in their little lives, have a Christmas. They didn’t know the gifts were donated, and they didn’t care. They were happy to be safe, in a home with their brother and sister, warm, and loved.”