Local organizations commence Operation 'Bag Drag' to assist growing needs in foster care
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They collected bags of all sorts from the community, as well as essentials that kids in the foster care system might need. The Beckley Knights of Columbus 5657 helped by cooking some good food for folks stopping in to donate.
William Lewis is a member of both the Beckley VFW and the Knights of Columbus.
Lewis said the VFW is dedicated to developing strong communities.
'This is our first time doing this for our day of service. We are hoping to turn it into a yearly event because it has gone wonderfully. It is one of the reasons I love living in a community like this. We have got a lot to learn, but we have still got so much support from the community. We have so many donations. It is really amazing. It is phenomenal,' said Lewis.
One of the organizations this 'Bag Drag' will be benefiting is Necco Foster Care.
Travis Wooten is the program director for Necco's Beckley location. He explained there is a great need in our local community.
'We find that a lot of kids come through with their belongings in trash bags and that is just an issue of dignity for us. It is just amazing to me that the community has gotten together and the VFW supported this. It is amazing to look around and see this luggage. They have no clue the amount of joy it will bring to kids not having to carry their belongings in trash bags,' said Wooten.
Wooten and Necco will be distributing these bags to foster children. This bag drop off is not the only way folks can help right now.
'There is a huge need for foster families right now. West Virginia is somewhere around 5,800 to 6,000 kids in care. If every foster parent now filled their house up to the max, there still would not be enough homes for foster kids, and in especially [with] teenagers – like one last week – we got 76 referrals for kids and we were not able to place a single team because we did not have any families that were willing to open up their hearts and homes to them,' said Wooten.
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