Non-profit brings hope to children in Foster Care: 'There's so many things that you just don't know'
HOLLAND, Mich. — On any given day in Michigan, according to Wellspring Foster Care, about 10,000 children are in foster care or a residential placement due to abuse or neglect. So, Hope Packages is a non-profit based in Holland that creates first night bags for children that are placed in Foster Care across the state.
Stacy Deters is a first time foster mom who raised a four-year-old baby boy for nine months before he returned home. Deters said, "There's so many things that you just don't know: learning the system, learning all the people to communicate with, figuring out daycare plans, school plans, all of the logistics."
The arrival of Deters' foster son gave Deters and her family very little time to prepare, so because of such short notice, Stacy's home was not fully ready to welcome a four-year-old. "We had a few things on hand for those first nights, but our license is for a variety of ages and both genders, so you can't possibly begin to have all of the things on hand that you might need," Deters said.
This is where Hope Packages comes into play, as founder Lisa Hoeve aims to bring comfort to these children and their families.
"We create first night bags, which are usually like a brand new backpack," Hoeve said.
These backpacks include pajamas, socks, underwear, toiletries, and blankets for families like Stacy's, to ease children and foster families into their new reality on that first night.
"There's a lot of tragedy in foster care," Hoeve said. "Not only are they being removed from some things that aren't safe for them, but they're going into a stranger's home, which is also very scary."
Hoeve was one of Fox 17's Pay it Forward Persons of the Month in 2021, and now, she's been named a 2024 L'Oréal Paris Woman of Worth.
"As a foster family, we saw how children often come into foster care, which is, sadly, often just whatever they're wearing," Hoeve said. "They're brought to your home, and sometimes they do pack things in a garbage bag."
Hoeve founded Hope Packages in 2015. Since then, Hope Packages has filled more than 7,200 backpacks, delivering them statewide.
