Page 4 - Hobe Sound Reflections - January '24

Page 4, Hobe Sound

Holiday Happenings

New Online Drive, More Sponsors Kaiser, community relations director for CCKids. The system after individual toy-

Make It A Bright Christmas For project, a partnership between CCKids and Guardians for request forms were turned in
New Futures, got a boost this year from an infusion of new
earlier in the fall.
Children In Foster Care sponsors and the addition of an online toy drive. New sponsors – 16
The online component alone, collected nearly 500 toys. onboarded this year – also
A boisterous “Yahoo!” rang “It was a last-minute addition, but it was an incredible success helped the program reach its
out from behind a makeshift because it gave people who are homebound or who prefer goal. “Keller Williams is a
desk full to brimming with not to shop in stores the ability to contribute,” Kaiser said. great example,” Kaiser said.
toys, packages and stacks of Those toys were sent directly to CCKids service centers “They were new this year, but Portia George, CCKids
paperwork. to help fill the need for children who entered the dependency they asked us to give them all family support worker,
The 2023 Making remaining unmatched names.” helps case managers get
Christmas Bright/Guardians for And they delivered on their toys to their families.
New Futures Angel Program commitment, she said. “Their
had just reached 100 percent network of realtors provided three gifts for each of the 120
of children matched with toys Amparo Gomez, the Christmas children they sponsored.”
– and Amparo Gomez, lovingly Queen for CCKids’ Making Of the more than 1,000 children who received gifts, 201
referred to as the Christmas Christmas Bright Program, were from Indian River County, 78 were in Martin County,
Queen by her volunteers and inspects toys collected from 123 were from Okeechobee County, and a whopping 516
colleagues, was excited. local sponsors. were from St. Lucie County, CCKids’ largest service area.
“We did it!” she cried. “All Many of those gifts were collected and delivered by
children on the list are taken care of!” Rytech Restoration Services, which has donated its trucks
The list in reference is long, composed of all children in and drivers to the program for more than five years.
the Communities Connected for Kids’ (CCKids) Circuit 19 “It’s an enormous undertaking, but we get it done thanks
dependency system and another 251 from the community – to the leadership of Guardians for New Futures and the many,
all told, 1,169 children. many groups and individuals in the community who sponsor
“It was an amazing year – one of the best,” said Christina Keller Williams collected toys for 120 children in foster care. children,” Kaiser said.

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