Positively impacting the lives of at-risk, unaccompanied homeless and foster children through education, academic success, and supported by essential resources and life skills.
Positively impacting the lives of at-risk, unaccompanied homeless and foster children through education, academic success, and supported by essential resources and life skills.
Positively impacting the lives of at-risk, unaccompanied homeless and foster children through education, academic success, and supported by essential resources and life skills.
Positively impacting the lives of at-risk, unaccompanied homeless and foster children through education, academic success, and supported by essential resources and life skills.
Fill a Heart 4 Kids (FAH4K) began in 2007 with the McAveeney family opening their hearts and their home to children in need of one as well as the McAveeneys’ daughters, Lilly & Ellorie, who wanted to do more. By 2008, Fill a Heart 4 Kids was igniting hope with their Project Valentine WeCare Packages™ for children living in group facilities, to help them feel loved and remembered on Valentine’s Day and other holidays and events.
Today, FAH4K supports over 2,400 foster and homeless children annually with critical necessities, such as food, clothing, educational support, life skill opportunities, and enriching hands-on volunteering opportunities to help to “Build Brighter Futures 4 Kids”.
Our mission is to offer foster children & homeless children:
Consistent, Adequate Meals
Seasonally Appropriate Clothing & Footwear (especially during winter)
Educational Support & Tutoring
Life Skill Opportunities (cooking, first aid, etc.)
Confidence Building Initiatives
Restoration of Dignity
Remembrance During Holidays
Recognition for Birthdays & Graduations
Currently in Illinois alone, there are approximately 25,000 unaccompanied homeless youth as well as nearly 3400 foster children waiting to be adopted. With inadequate state resources, these children more often lack the basic necessities and have experienced unimaginable pain and suffering.
These children struggle to focus in school as they worry about finding a safe place to sleep that night, if and where their next meal will be, and if they will be bullied for lacking school supplies and clean clothes. Many feel shame and sadness as they overhear classmates talk about birthday parties and holiday events they themselves will not be a part of themselves. Many stop attending school; others resort to trafficking themselves just to obtain the basic items they lack.
At Fill a Heart 4 Kids, we partner with teachers, social workers, principals, and vetted social service organizations in an effort to reach the most vulnerable children. Our efforts restore the dignity to these children and reduce shaming from their peers and provide needed school supplies to increase their academic attendance.
We welcome children to our beautiful and newly-renovated facility in Lake Forest where they can learn life skills, have access to educational programs, celebrate special occasions in an effort to increase foster children’s self-confidence and instill a sense of belonging. We bring tutors to group homes as well as host special events and transform holidays to make special experiences and memories that help these children feel loved and remembered.
4 Kids Brighter Futures ProgramTM provides tutoring, educational experiences, field trips, needed supplies, life skills education, job skills training, and cultural experiences to promote academic success and inspire hope for children who have faced unimaginable obstacles.
4 Brighter Futures Work ProgramTM equips foster teens with practical work and financial management skills. One facet of this program offers hands-on work experience within our organization.
4 Kids Special EventTM offers volunteer opportunities for our VIP volunteers to attend movies, go on field trips, observe holiday celebrations, and celebrate birthdays and other special occasions.
Brighter Futures Foster Facilities Renovation ProgramTM provides funds to renovate group homes in an effort to create safer, healthier, and happier living environments for the children living there.
Care packages to help kids feel healthier & clean while reducing bullying & increasing school attendance
Foster homes are unable to properly celebrate birthday, but this program help these kids feel loved & remembered
These packages are perfect for children to celebrate birthdays, holidays, and other special occasions
Meant to help kids who worry about where their next meal comes from during weekends and school breaks get enough food to eat
Helping children feel loved & remembered with gifts, treats, & loving notes during a very difficult day for them
Give children in need a pair of cozy socks and foot lotion to help them feel loved and remembered.
Breaks from school create stressful situations for kids who are unsure where their next meal will come from, but these help them get through spring break
The summer months are difficult for foster & homeless children, but donations help brighten their spirits & celebrate end of the school year celebrations
Lift the spirits of homeless children during the cold winter months with cocoa packets & other gifts to help them feel warm & loved
Thanksgiving break for homeless children create stressful situations where they are unsure where their next meal will come from, but this helps them with this difficult time.
Winter break is a difficult for homeless children who rely on school meals and the cold winter break can make these weeks more painful for them.
Helping children feel loved & remembered with gifts, treats, & loving notes during a very difficult day for them
Give children in need a pair of cozy socks & lotion during the cold winter months
Sponsor a Fill a BasketTM to help children feel loved and remembered during Easter
The summer months are difficult for foster & homeless children, but donations help brighten their spirits & celebrate end of the school year celebrations
Summer heat causes headaches for children who go without water for extended periods of time, but these care packages keep kids safer & hydrated
Sell lemonade in your neighborhood to help foster & homeless children in need of critical school supplies
Foster children & homeless children need school supplies to ensure they are prepared for their first day of school & are ready to learn
Helping homeless & foster children celebrate the Halloween season who otherwise feel left out of holiday celebrations with gifts & costumes
Homeless kids need coats, hats, gloves, & blankets to help them make it through the severe winter when they lack the basic necessities
Lift the spirits of homeless children during the cold winter months with cocoa packets & other gifts to help them feel warm & loved
Thanksgiving break for homeless children create stressful situations where they are unsure where their next meal will come from, but this helps them with this difficult time.
Winter break is a difficult for homeless children who rely on school meals and the cold winter break can make these weeks more painful for them.
Breaks from school create stressful situations for kids who are unsure where their next meal will come from, but these help them get through spring break
Ensuring children get access to food through weekends, school breaks and holidays
Providing thousands of necessary supplies so children are prepared to learn without shame as well as tutoring support to children in group homes
Sponsoring thousands of Toiletries 4 Dignity packages & other critical necessities for children, increasing school attendance & providing them with dignity
Offering thousands of WeCare packages to help children feel special & cared for during the holidays
Hosting special events including birthday & graduation celebrations to help children heal & feel valued
Hosting special events including birthday & graduation celebrations to help children heal & feel valued
Come see how you can help change the lives of homeless and foster children by volunteering for Fill a Heart 4 Kids today!
Donations, great and small, have lasting impacts on kids in need. Your contributions can change their world for the better and bring love and hope to their lives!
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