There's a family I've been working with this year that is low income.  The student I work with has a brother who is special needs and bound to a wheel chair.  Mother is a full time caregiver for her special needs son. The two students receive counseling services to assist with various family dynamics challenges and adjustment challenges in middle school.  My student has been having difficulty with peer relationships due to low self-esteem.  He has expressed interest in working on his health over the summer and asked mom if she could get him a gym membership. However, mother can't afford it due to various financial challenges including repairs needed for their special needs van.  Student doesn't show interest in many activities but initiated this request himself. Mom has also been working on her health and is attempting to make dietary changes for the whole family to support their wellbeing. Student is too young for the free Planet Fitness summer membership.  Mom would have to get a plan and take student with her. The price for the Black Card membership, which would allow mother and student to enter together, would be $75 for both the month of June, including start up fee, monthly fee, and annual fee (all of these are required to initiate a membership) and $25 for the month of July. A gift certificate for Planet Fitness, if they offer them, would be best, or a cash card to reimburse parent if possible. Thank you so much for your consideration.

We have a wonderful family of 5 that has been experiencing financial difficulties for several months now. Dad is the sole provider for the family and has seen a reduction in the number of hours he is able to work. With the school summer break approaching the family is very concerned on not having sufficient funds to provide food for the family. The three children will be at home during the summer break and will need breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We are submitting a request for support in securing food assistance which would lift a huge burden from them and the three students overall wellbeing. A food voucher of $500. to assist the family in providing meals, this assistance would greatly help the family with the nourishment of their daily meals. We are assisting the parents in finding other resources that could also provide some assistance. The family would greatly benefit from this assistance and would be enormously grateful for it. Thank you and may the Lord Bless you.

This is US Veteran mother of five children. The mother currently has Child Welfare involvement. The mother is on track for the children to return home to the care of the mother. The mother is in need of 2 twin beds with mattresses. If the mother is blessed with the beds it will relive any concerns the Department may have regarding the children having a safe place to sleep. Thank you for the blessings you provide to the families.

This is a family of three young children, 2 boys and 1 girl. This family has current Child Welfare involvement and the children are currently in out of home care. The family is currently working on addressing issues in the home that are concerns of the Department. The home will be assessed and needs to be considered a clean and safe environment for the children. The family is in need of dressers for the bedrooms. If the family is blessed with dressers, it will allow the family to store their clothing and address the concern of clothing in boxes. Thank you for the good work you do for families.

Bowman High School is need of Back to school supplies for the coming school year. We would love if one of our community partners would help us with a back to school drive. We are in need of Backpacks- mostly black and blue or solid neutral colors- we serve Jr and Seniors. We can always use additional school supplies- Pens, Pencils, notebooks, folders, highlighters etc. We are a Title one school and many of our families cannot afford to buy much in the way of supplies for back to school. Any partnership would be greatly appreciated.

Hello Careportal Family! Support is being requested on behalf of an 18 year old youth who is graduating from Antelope Valley High School this coming week! The youth has been in and out of the child welfare system since he was about 2 years old, due to issues of parental substance abuse and mental health. The youth has faced many challenges through navigating the system, but has managed to successfully graduate high school, and obtain stable housing. He is currently renting a room in a home, and is in need of a new bed. He is looking for a full or queen sized bed and mattress, as what he currently has is too small as he is quite tall. The youth plans to begin working and is considering enrolling in junior college as well in the fall. Any support provided is greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Mother is a single parent to two young children, a 2 month old and a 15 month old. Mother is in need of a double stroller for child and her baby girl. Since DCFS has been involved, mother has worked part time while pregnant to pay rent and other necessities. Mother is currently on maternity leave until July 2023 and will need to return to work in order to pay her bills. Since costs of living expenses are rising, mother would benefit from having assistance with a double stroller so she can take the kids out for walks, errands, and other family activities.

Family came to the attention of DFS with a General Neglect allegation. Family lost their apartment few months ago and currently living in a motel and paying out of pocket. However, family’s savings are to be exhausted. The children’s father is the only parent working at a AM/PM Gas station. Family is in need of financial assistance at this time to be able to meet their children’s needs. Parents have a child that suffers from constant seizures and need a more stable place. In addition, children missed many school days due to parents vehicle was no in working condition and need assistance to repair the vehicle. The school and parents have a temporary agreement for school district to provide transportation but it is unknown how long this plan will last. Assistance with paying for motel room is being asked. Rate is $106 per night, asking for assistance for one week. The family is currently looking to get into section 8 for an apartment on their own. DCFS has referred family to DPSS and other housing agencies for a more permanent housing solution. However, applications are pending. Greatly would appreciate any assistance.

Mother is 24 years old and father is 22, with 3 small children under the age of 5. Father was recently incarcerated as a result of the current allegations for the family. CSW observed that the family all sleep in the same bed. Mother expressed that she cannot afford to purchase the children a separate bed at this time. Mother is requesting assistance with the purchase of a twin size bunk bed for the 3 children. Mother states that she plans to have the two female children aged 1 and 3 sleep in one portion of the bunk bed together and the 5 year old male sleep in one portion of the bunk bed. Children are also in need of clothing and shoes if possible, as now mother will be applying for DPSS assistance as father cannot work due to incarceration. Any assistance will greatly be appreciated.

Hello, I am currently supporting a young mother with an open DCFS case. Baby was born with health issues including a heart condition and is fed through a feeding tube. Mother have been compliant with the court orders. She has experienced many obstacles including financial hardship. Mother is in need of the following items to help her get organized and keep baby safe. If this need is met, a big weight would be lifted and it would help her feel confident and allow family to remain together. Two dressers Two kitchen trash cans with lids Safety guard rail for twin bed, for both sides Queen size bed sheets Queen size blanket Twin size sheets Twin size boy's comforter Two hampers

Single client only receiving disability is struggling with purchasing a bus pass. Being able to provide client with a bus pass will strengthen the family in moving forward with reunification. Client would be able to get to the drug testing site, services and visitation, this leading to reunification.

A youth is in need of our support. She is a young adult that is participating in extended foster care. Unfortunately, she has experienced so much instability due to having issues with her former roommates. As a result, she has had to move three times in the past 2-years. As we all know, it is very difficult to move from one place to another. The youth has experienced so much stress from the lack of stability that she even had to take off a semester from school because she was so overwhelmed. This was a very difficult decision for her as obtaining a college degree is one of her goals. Nevertheless, she remains so resilient and she continues to persevere despite everything that she has experienced. The youth has yearned to have her own place, but most importantly she just wants to have a sense of stability in a place that she can call home. Luckily, she was able to find an apartment that she can afford all on her own. Unfortunately, since she was in a shared living settings, every time she moved she had to either leave some of her belongings behind, or sell them because they were purchased together with her former roommates. As a result, she needs to start over, and she needs help to purchase furniture for her new apartment.

Support is being requested on behalf of a non-minor dependent (NMD) living in Wellington, KS, but has an open case in Los Angeles. The NMD entered foster care at the age of 17, due to his difficult behaviors, including drug use and his mother’s inability to provide a safe and stable home. Throughout the past few years, the NMD had continued to struggle with addiction, but ultimately went through a rehabilitation program and is now sober (and has been for about 1 year). Since becoming sober, the NMD found it hard to continue to live in the Los Angeles area, as there were too many reminders of his childhood trauma, and being in the same area led to begin using drugs. The NMD then decided to move to Kansas with his girlfriend, as that is where she is from and where her family lives. For about the past six months, NMD and his girlfriend have been living together in Kansas and things have been going well overall. Both are working and making ends meet. However, their refrigerator has gone out and they are in need of a refrigerator. The NMD shared that he would be grateful with just a simple standard sized refrigerator, so they can store their food. Getting one donated would save them a bit of a struggle, as they are still trying to become stable. Thank you so much!!!

Client has severe physical and mental delays. Our client and his adult sister had been renting out a single room that was not appropriate for our client. They were recently able to secure a new apartment and need a refrigerator and two twin beds to sleep in. These needs will allow them to comfortable reside in the apartment and allow our client to have his much needed services provided within the apartment.

The Aunt of this child was kind enough to take her sister's child after the sister was unable to overcome her substance abuse problem to take care of her child. The Aunt has two other children under five but understands the strength of family as she had been in the child welfare system. The Aunt had struggled with physical, emotional and sexual abuse but did not have an addiction problem. The funds will assist the family, due to father losing his employment over the last year. The family will have the ability to live without the stress of rent for one month while the father looks for employment. The child is thriving in the home and considers his Aunt his mom. Both family members are looking for employment.

Mother needs two twin-sized beds, with bedding, mattresses, and frames for her two children. Since successfully reunifying with her three children, mother has been working on providing for them as a single mother and has attempted to save for beds, but has not been successful. Although, mother is having that challenge, mother is meeting the case plan goals, court orders and is enrolled in substance abuse prevention and parenting. Furthermore, mother is committed to maintaining the family together. During csw work with mother, she has identified the following strengths: mother is an advocate for her children’s needs, she accepts support and feedback from service providers, and is resilient. Mother’s goals are to close the case with court, receive the appropriate mental health/developmental services for her children, and to maintain a sober and safe home environment. For these reasons, csw is advocating for mother to have the need identified met. The main reason csw is requesting this need to be fulfilled is in order to provide a safe environment for the children. This need is critical to ensure the children have a loving stable home.

This is a family of 4 with two children ages 3 and 7. Both parents work and have limited income. Currently the family of 4 rents out one room in a house. Due to the limited space, sleeping arrangements are challenging. The children are getting older and will benefit from having their own bed for safety. The family is requesting a bunk bed for their children. The family would appreciate assistance to support their family.

This is a family of 5 with 3 children ages 3, 12, and 14. The father works and the mother recently found part time work to support the family. The father struggles with mental health issues and his income is not consistent. The family is in need of items for their children. Their 3 year old does not have a bed and needs one as he is transitioning to sleeping alone. The daughters also need new tennis shoes. The family can also use items for their home such as a new stove and cooking supplies. The landlord will not replace the current stove, which is not working properly. The family would like to have a working stove to cook healthy meals at home. Any help would be greatly appreciated by this family so they can work towards self sufficiency.

This is a family of 4 with 2 young children, 1 year old and 2 years old. They just moved to a new home. They prepared financially for their move but once they moved, they encountered unplanned expenses. They are asking for one time support in any amount to support them with this month's rent.

This is a family of 4 with two young children ages 1 year old and 7 years old. The family had a recent death in their family and it impacted the father's work hours. This impacted their ability to have enough income to pay their rent. Their monthly rent is $1,800 and they need support with 1/2 of their rent. This one time support would ensure that this family would not go into further debt and prevent possible eviction.