This year has been an incredibly exciting year for Foster Arizona! We celebrated our 5th anniversary as an organization, we hosted our 2nd annual gala and the Founder & CEO, Kim Vehon, was recognized on a national level for her work in foster care in Arizona. But even more exciting than all of that- we’ve grown the number of people we’ve reached, adoptable kids we’ve featured, volunteers we’ve engaged, we’ve launched our aged-out foster youth housing initiative and we’ve hosted more kids in foster care at our Kid Connection Events.

This year is all about growth! And we’re not stopping.

Through our social media channel alone, we’ve reached over 390,000 individuals with over 592,000 impressions by sharing stories, encouragement and educational videos and posts that mindfully inspire and encourage Arizonans to have a positive impact on the lives of kids in foster care.

At our kid connection events, we hosted over 1,600 kids for unique experiences like an Alice in Wonderland themed birthday at Dave & Busters and filled a real need in getting nearly 500 kids ready for back-to-school with backpacks, supplies, haircuts and books! We inspired connections between host volunteers and kids in care that lead to family connections, and even a teenage boy learning how to read because a Kid Connection Event host volunteer’s family committed to helping him learn when they discovered he didn’t know how.

These are just the quantifiable examples of growth and connection that are at the core of Foster Arizona. There are so many more, small moments of support, joy and encouragement, that happen within the sphere of our events, our housing and our videos that there isn’t enough time to share them all.

As we move into a new year, you can expect to see even more of Foster Arizona as we grow into new space in our aged-out housing program, continue to expand our Kid Connection Events through new partnerships and share more inspiring and real stories about how YOU can make a positive impact in the lives of kids in foster care.

We count on each of our volunteers and donors to help spread the message of encouragement and connection around these kids that need us most as well as to take hold of moments where they can make an impact. So please, share our posts with your friends and family, volunteer as a host atone of our Kid Connection Events, become a mentor for an aged-out youth in housing…there’s something that YOU can do today, no matter how small, to make an impact. We’re going to continue to grow in order to continue our vision that every child in foster care knows that they are loved and supported and to educate, encourage and empower Arizonans to have a positive impact in their lives. Won’t you join us?

Ashley Schick

Foster Arizona Team Lead