Holiday Wishes

Social workers are used to giving more than they get. So, true to form, their holiday wishes are to make life a little easier for some of the children and families they serve. By granting one or more of these wishes, you help a very real child with a very real need. Thank you for all you continue to do for the children in our community!

To grant any of the wishes below, contact Mehgan Bechtel at 616.361.4138 or to email her, click here.

1. FOSTER PARENTS FOR SIBLING GROUPS
Help keep siblings together! A sad fact of foster care is often children are separated from their siblings. Please consider becoming a foster parent for three or more children to help keep their bonds strong.

2. DRY/CANNED GOODS FOR FAMILIES
A wonderful foster family, which took in two brothers to be with their sister has decided to adopt all three children. However, this is a financial struggle for the family. We would love to provide any extra help we can by supplying them with dry and canned goods to help keep costs down.

3. SCRAPBOOKING AND CARD MAKING SUPPLIES
The kids on the St. John’s Home campus love arts and crafts projects! This is new for many of them. Putting together scrapbooks of their lives can be tremendously healing for our kids. It helps them understand their past and remember their positive experiences in their time with us. We need a cricut (pronounced “cricket”) machine, paper, rubber stamps (of all kinds), ink pads and double-stick tape and other adhesives.

4. HATS, MITTENS, AND GLOVES
Who says kids won’t wear their hats and mittens? When it gets cold outside, these go “like hotcakes” at our Christmas parties for our kids in adoptive and foster homes. We are looking for all sizes, shapes and colors.

5. GIFT CARDS FOR CHRISTMAS PARTIES
We throw a big party at Christmas time for all our kids and mentors in our Big Brothers Big Sisters Program over at West Catholic High School’s gym. And what would a party be like without presents! By providing gift cards to our staff, they can purchase exactly the right present for each of our kids in our mentoring programs.

6. BIKES, HELMETS, AND LOCKS FOR KIDS
Our Young Delinquents Intervention Program (YDIP) is a highly successful program, which teaches kids how to follow the rules and live safely. We needs bikes, helmets and bike locks to keep them busy and on the right path. It’s also a great way to get around and get some exercise while they are at it. These kids are ages 11 and younger, both boys and girls—but more boys usually.

7. GIFT CARDS FOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS
Success in school is one of the hallmarks of the residential program on the St. John’s Home campus. The Academic Support Team is hoping to get $5 to $10 gift cards to local restaurants and shops at the local malls to be used as rewards for success in school. These gift cards will be given throughout the year and at the year-end party for all the kids on campus.

8. HIGH CHAIR FOR TODDLER
Tara is an eighteen-year-old mom with a one-year-old child. She and her baby are living in a shelter but hope to move into a transitional housing program soon. Tara needs a highchair for her son to make mealtimes easier and healthier.

9. BUS PASSES FOR TEEN MOMS
Shawn is a young mom with a 2-year-old daughter. She is going to school in the evenings to get her high school diploma. Shawn also wanted to look for a job yet transportation is always a challenge. Shawn and other young moms in our Sisters In Support Program need bus passes to get to and from day care, school, and work. Passes for 10 and 31 days can be purchased at Meijer’s, Family fare and D & W stores.

10. NEW BEDS FOR FAMILY
One of the families served by our Kent School Services Network Program at East Kentwood High School needs four queen-size beds.

11. SPECIAL MENTOR FOR A SPECIAL BOY
Hakeel is an eight-year old African-American boy who lives in the inner city with a single mom of five children. He does not have contact with his father and really wants to have a male friend in his life. Hakeel is in the second grade and loves all sports, fishing, swimming, movies and music. He really enjoys one-on-one attention and would greatly benefit from a Big brother.

12. SAFE SLEEP FOR BABIES
Because of the changes in the safety laws regarding cribs, we are no longer able to accept donated cribs. However, many of our teen moms still need a safe place for heir babies to sleep. We need some Pack-N-Plays available to give to moms so their babies can sleep safely.

13. EYE EXAM AND CONTACTS
A 16-year-old boy wants to continue to wear contacts. He is very young and athletic and would love to play sports without wearing his glasses. In order to obtain another year’s supply of contacts, he needs a new vision exam with contact lens fitting. If you are able to help this young man, he would be thrilled.

14. YEAR MEMBERSHIP AT YMCA OR KROC CENTER
Our Ryan House boys on the St. John’s campus love to keep busy. And they love their time at places like the YMCA or Kroc Center. They would get plenty of use out of a one-year membership at either of these settings.

15. SEWING MACHINE AND SUPPLIES
Yes, kids are still learning how to sew! In fact, they love it! But we need three sewing machines, a serger machine, and a host of supplies: fabric, fabric scissors, marking pens and pencils, pins, needles, sewing machine needles, thread of all colors (especially white), rotary cutters, self-healing cutting mats, clear cutting rules (quilting rules of all kinds). Who knows, maybe we’ll discover a world-class fashion designed in our midst!

16. POPCORN MACHINE FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
One of the sites for our Kent School Services Network Program is Campau Elementary. One of our goals in this program is to welcome students and their families to the school setting. The kids there would love new popcorn machine for snacks during the day….maybe some of their parents would too!

17. A MENTOR FOR A SINGLE MOM
Jackie is sometimes overwhelmed by the stress of being a single mom and would like someone with who she could talk. Jackie wants to learn how to cook and bake and would like somehow to help take her and her child to the zoo or park. But most of all, Jackie would like a wise mentor with experiences as a parent who is willing to share her wisdom.

18. GAS CARDS FOR GREAT TEENS IN FOSTER CARE
Teenagers in foster care face more challenges than most teens. One of these difficulties is obtaining their driver’s license. Often after they have found a way to complete driver’s education, identified a support person with whom they can complete the driving hours, shown responsible driving behaviors and saved up enough to buy a car, they are left with little money left to even drive themselves to school! Please donate gas cards to help foster teens in care to improve their level of independence within the community.

19. DINING ROOM TABLE AND CHAIRS
Jeremy and Dawn will soon be reunited with their son, Jeremy Jr. During visits, Jeremy Jr. sits in his high chair while his mom and dad sit on little chairs around a coffee table. We would love to give them a real dining room table and a set of chairs so they can eat as a family more comfortably.

20. YOUNG ATHLETE IN NEED OF CONTACTS
D’Angelo is a young man in high school who enjoys sports. He wants to be an active player on the football and basketball teams of Creston high School. However, he wears glasses and really needs contacts to fully participate. The hope is for him to be provided contacts so he may participate in the activities he loves.

21. CAR SEATS FOR FOSTER FAMILIES
We have over 200 foster families in our agency. All of them need approved car seats for their kids. Some of our families take in many children and their budgets become more and more stretched. We’d like your help in helping to de-fray some of these costs by donating approved car seats for kids of various ages.

22. GRAPHING CALCULATORS FOR REFUGEE KIDS
We need graphing calculators at our Kent School Services Network Program at East Kentwood for a number of refugee students who are new to the school. These students are taking pre-calculus classes and we would love to provide all six of them with these necessary items.

23. SPECIAL STROLLER
There is a sweet five-year-old boy with significant medical needs who requires around-the-clock care by his single mother. Since he has outgrown the weight limit for standard strollers and his mother is no longer able to carry him for long periods of time, he spends most of his time at home or attending medical appointments. In order for his mother to get him out in the community more often, he needs a special stroller, which is able to support his weight. The special stroller costs $180 and would greatly increase his ability to get out and around. His mother would be thrilled if someone could help out!

24. PORTABLE FILE BOX AND HANGING FILES
Our older kids living in independent living need to keep their important papers on hand and organized. We like to provide them with portable file boxes with a set of hanging files to get started.

25. WEBELOS SUPPLIES FOR ADVENTURE PROGRAM
The Adventure Program on the St. John’s Campus can use any sort of Webelos supplies, particularly current Webelos books, uniform shirts, neckerchiefs and slides and each of the eleven boys would love to have their own Webelos hat!

26. SINGLE MOM NEEDS HELP WITH FOOD AND GAS
There is a single mom who has recently been reunited with her children. We want to make sure she is off to a great new start with her kids. She could use gift cards from Meijer to help with food and gas.

27. GIFT CARDS FOR TOYS, GAMES, AND BOOKS
Our kids in foster care visit with their parents in special visiting rooms on our D.A.B. campus on Leonard Street. We have spruced up the rooms with new paint and pictures but now need a fresh supply of toys, games and books for these rooms. We would love to get some gift cards so we can purchase what we need for these rooms.

28. SCRAPBOOKING SUPPLIES FOR FOSTER CARE KIDS
Our kids in foster care love to make scrapbooks. It helps them to organize their thoughts and memories of their time in our foster homes. We would love to provide them with all the supplies necessary for scrapbooking: paper, scissors, stamps, ink pads, tape and anything else you can think of.

29. GIFT CARDS FOR KIDS IN INDEPENDENT LIVING
Teenagers who have successfully left foster home placements often move into independent living homes in the community. We work with them to help them settle into their new lives and become independent. Occasionally their budgets fall short and there are months where they struggle to purchase food or other emergency items. Please consider donating gift cards to any local grocery store to allow us to help these teens in moments of desperate need.

30. DIAPER BAGS AND SUPPLIES FOR YOUNG MOMS
The young moms served in our Pregnancy Support Services Program need diaper bags and supplies. This includes baby wipes, onesies, socks, bottles, pacifiers and baby washes.

31. CONTACTS FOR TEEN TO PLAY SPORTS
A young man named Monquell wants to look his best. After all, he’s a teenager. He would love to have new contact lens. He has been spending his own money to buy ill fitting and unhealthy contacts to try and improve his self image. This is a positive teen who is caring toward others.

32. HATS, BOOTS, AND GLOVES FOR A FAMILY AT COIT CREATIVE ARTS ACADEMY
A mother of five children is worried about the upcoming winter. She wants to make sure her kids all have proper hats, boots and gloves. Her two boys wear sizes 10/12 and 7 and her daughter wears size 6.

33. MENTOR FOR SINGLE MOM IN FOSTER CARE
Living in foster care with her child, Jamie needs a patient and loving volunteer who will work slowly and diligently to build a relationship. Jamie needs someone who can teach her about good parenting. She also needs encouragement to finish high school and go on to college.

34. LEARNING AND ACTIVITY COLORING BOOKS
Kids in all of our programs love to learn and keep busy. We are looking for new and interesting learning and activity books for kids at all levels—from coloring books to crosswords and everything in between!

35. CARE BAGS FOR KIDS GOING INTO FOSTER CARE
We provide each of our kids entering foster homes with a “care bag” which includes a new set of pajamas, toiletries, small toys and stuffed animals packed into a backpack. We give these to them the day they move into one of our foster homes. These snuggly items go a long way to help soothe a child’s fears and anxieties. Monetary donations are accepted to purchase these items.

36. YOUNG MOM NEEDS VACUUM AND SUPPLIES
A 19-year-old single mom who is being helped by our Pregnancy Support Services Program needs a new vacuum. She could also use any cleaning supplies, which will help her keep her apartment neat and clean for her six-month old daughter.

37. MENTORS FOR NEW BRANCHES CHARTER SCHOOL
New Branches Charter School, located near Eastern and 36th St. SE in Grand Rapids, is looking for mentors to volunteer through Big Brothers Big Sisters School-based program once a week for an hour. Mentors would be paired up with an elementary age child at the school and help them with reading skills. Big Brothers Big Sisters has other schools in the Kent County and
Eastern Ottawa County areas that also need school-based mentors.

38. WINTER CLOTHING FOR FAMILY OF FIVE
A mother of five children at Campau Park Elementary is in need of help. She wants to make sure her kids all have warm and properly fitting clothing for the upcoming winter. Please call for specific clothing and shoe sizes.