This article is brought to you by the Community Foundation Serving Howard, Clinton, and Carroll Counties. How does a Community Foundation actually work? We don’t simply receive gifts and spend them. In reality, many charitable funds are invested with the goal of creating lasting support for the community.
That’s part of what makes the community foundation model so powerful: generosity today can create impact well into the future. Learn more about the Community Foundation by visiting us on Facebook or at www.cfhoward.org.
Josiah White’s Foster Care hosted the I Walk with Fosters Color Walk on Sat., Aug. 29, at Jackson Morrow Park, drawing 129 people together for a morning of community celebration in support of children and families in the foster care system.
The event aimed to raise awareness about Indiana’s continued shortage of licensed foster families, which leaves many local children without a safe, stable place to stay when they need one most. In Howard County, 132 children are currently in need of foster placement, with only 29 licensed foster homes.
The free, family-friendly event featured a one-mile walk showered in colorful powder, along with food from Chick-fil-A and Kona Ice, games, face painting, balloon animals, and booths from local community partners. Each color of powder carried its own meaning: purple for Foster Care Awareness, blue for Child Abuse Prevention, green for Adoption Awareness, orange for support for foster parents, yellow for hope and pink for compassion
“We are grateful for the number of people who came to this event and chose to be a voice for children waiting for a home,” said Jennifer Hochstedler, Foster Care Manager for Josiah White’s.
Beyond turnout, the event connected families with information about becoming licensed foster parents.
The I Walk With Fosters Color Walk was made possible through the support of the Community Foundation Serving Howard, Clinton and Carroll Counties.
Josiah White’s continues to license and support foster parents across the Kokomo area. Those interested in learning more about becoming a foster parent can inquire at josiahwhites.org/foster-a-child/.