We are excited to announce our 2nd 2023 Spring Grant Recipient!
Thanks to our generous Legacy Giving Circle donor community, Foster Angels of Central Texas is receiving a $25,000 grant towards direct assistance for children and youth in foster care.
Initiative Location: Austin, Texas
Initiative Cause Areas: Crisis Support; Disability Services; Education; Family Empowerment Programs; Food Insecurity; Foster Care and Adoption Services; Homelessness; LGBTQ+; Mental Health
UN Sustainable Development Goals: 03 Good Health & Well-Being; 04 Quality Education
Initiative Description: We work closely with Child Protective Services (CPS) Region 7 caseworkers, who serve the 30 counties that make up this Central Texas region, along with CASA and community partners, to learn about and fulfill the needs of local children in foster care. We receive and fulfill requests almost every day of the year and fulfill these requests usually within 48-72 hours, which is a hallmark of our program model, because we strive to act in lieu of the state support that takes weeks, months or does not happen at all.
Funding would be utilized immediately to fulfill the most urgent needs of children and youth in foster care across Central Texas: basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter; healthcare expenses not covered or denied by Medicaid or state agencies; and children’s needs for counseling and other mental health supports. It will assist with any therapeutic items, activities or services. Funds would also be utilized to provide educational supports that can make a real difference in a child’s ability to succeed at school, as foster children oftentimes change schools and need tutoring to catch up to peers. We help older foster youth gain access to specialized workforce training, such as vocational or certificate programs, and assist with GED and SAT/ACT test prep and testing fees.
Initiative Impact: By the end of the grant period, we will have spent 100% of grant funds to provide direct assistance to children and youth living or transitioning out of foster care.
We will have responded to nearly 100% of requests within a three-day time frame or less, unless a request is particularly large or unique, in which case a plan is formulated and implemented to secure additional funding from a partner agency or other source.
The requests we receive have a wide variance in cost, from $50 for a new backpack/school supplies, $150 for new clothing, $200 for a new laptop, $250 for a new bed, but generally stay in line with about a $200 average per request. Due to inflation some of these prices have increased. We project that at minimum, 100 individuals will be directly assisted through a grant of $25,000.
Initiative Sustainability: FACT sustains funding for its programs by operating efficiently with a small staff and much support from volunteers. Our efficient program model keeps our expenses low, so that 100% of donated funds are utilized to provide direct assistance to children in foster care. However, because the need for FACT’s assistance continues to expand yearly, we have added two full-time positions to our team – including a Programs & Events Coordinator and Development & Grants Manager. With the growth in our programming it will help to have additional support to ensure we can keep up with the demand. In addition – our grants manager is conducting research to increase the number of proposals submitted to foundations and businesses, and developing additional sources of revenue, including events. In September we host our biggest fundraising event, our Shining Stars Luncheon.
