Local children can enjoy "Breakfast with Santa" next month as part of a fundraiser for The CALL, Children of Arkansas Loved for a Lifetime, a faith-based, nonprofit organization that finds foster and adoptive homes for children in Garland and Hot Spring counties.
The second annual event is scheduled for Dec. 9 at Hot Springs Baptist Church, 144 Weston Road, with the first seating at 8 a.m. followed by a second seating at 10 a.m. Tickets are $10 per person, which includes a photo with Santa and a take-home craft. Tickets can be purchased by texting "Merry" to 51555.
The CALL is dedicated to finding homes for children in the area through partnerships with local churches. Sisters in Service has partnered with the organization to assist with the day's events.
"We really wanted to do something to get the community involved while creating the opportunity to give back to our foster and adoptive families. We're also working to tie the event back to our Christian foundation," said Lauren Jenkins, co-fundraising chairwoman for The CALL.
Breakfast will include last year's favorite Santa-shaped pancakes, sausage, a hot chocolate bar, juice and milk, as well as a holiday-themed craft children can take home. A portion of the event will be dedicated to celebrating the reason behind the season, including a reading of the Christmas story and party favors celebrating the birth of Jesus.
County Coordinator Diane Wright said the fundraiser will benefit the resources needed to train potential foster and adoptive parents and those who already participate in the program. This year, the hope is to raise enough money to provide foster families with a $200 gift card to Kroger for groceries and a family pass to Garvan Woodland Gardens.
"Ideally, we want to raise enough money to know that we can do something for each foster family every month of the coming year," said Chelsea Hall, co-fundraising chairwoman.
"Overall, fostering and adopting can be scary because of the expense. We try to host several fundraisers throughout the year so we can help alleviate that expense by providing tickets for family events or gift cards for the parents to have a date night," Hall said.
In addition to raising funds, The CALL will also be collecting donations of any sized diapers and wipes to distribute to foster families in the two counties. A second donation location will be set up at Picture Perfect Imaging and Float Spa, 4332 Central Ave.
As of Monday, there were 117 children in foster care in Garland County and 67 children in Hot Spring County, but these numbers change daily. Despite the pressing need for foster families, there are only 23 regular foster homes in Garland County and six in Hot Spring County.
"If every single church in Garland and Hot Spring counties had one foster family, there would not be any children without a foster family," Wright said.
"The holiday season serves as a reminder of the bigger picture for the Christian community. God intends for us to serve others first," she said.
According to Wright, the hardest children to place in homes are teenagers and those who are a part of a family group. Nearly 80 percent of the children in the local foster care system end up being placed in a home in a different county. That transition is disruptive to the daily life of a child already in a difficult situation.
"We want local families for local children. Moving schools is stressful, and these children often spend more time with their school families than they do their foster families," Wright said.
Local on 11/21/2017