May 18, 2013; Jungle Island, Miami, Florida
www.floridafapa.org/duffelsforkids.html
www.facebook.com/AidForChange
Introduction:
About 12 years ago, I was sitting in my office with a patient while my then 10 year old daughter, Shifali, was doing her homework in the open waiting area.
Another 10 years old girl sat quietly nearby with a trash bag by her feet. Curious, my daughter walked up to her and asked her why she was carrying her trash.
The girl responded, “It’s my stuff” and showed her. Shocked that anyone could be carrying their lives’ belongings in a trash bag my fourth grader went back to
her school the next day and as class representative for her grade took it up with her school council. The council voted for the project and “Dollars for Duffels” was
born. Forest Ridge Academy raised $400.00 from concerned parents and our clinic matched their fundraising efforts. With Indiana’s CASA’s strong support, the
children bought 28 duffel bags for foster kids and CASA distributed the bags to Indiana’s foster children.
That was the first fundraiser 12 years ago.
In 2012, teenagers from Munster High School in Indiana took up this cause. “Duffels for Angels” as it was now called was sponsored by Aid for Change Corp a
non-profit organization headed by high school Sophomore Sidarth Singh. Together the team made a video that represented the emotions and challenges of their
peers in foster care vimeo.com/45385229.
On June 30, 2012, the first ever Walkathon was organized by the Aid for Change Team and the kids proudly wore their bright red “I am Amazing” T-Shirts. This
November 2013, a banquet in Indiana s being organized with powerful individuals in organizational and political power assisting the Aid for Change team with the
event planning.
Marsha Friedman and EMSI:
In a few very short weeks, Florida’s Foster Parent Association will be hosting its first ever “Duffels for Kids” Walkathon. A few years ago, I had the pleasure of
connecting with Marsha Friedman, CEO of EMSI; a well-known and widely respected PR firm in Florida. We asked for her help with Duffels for Kids. With zero
hesitation she said, “Absolutely!” Thanks to her gifted and talented PR efforts, Marsha Friedman from EMSI www.emsincorporated.com and her team have
donated to FFPA and Duffels for Kids time and energy in outreach efforts to print, radio, and television media. She is a relative foster parent herself, although she
does not call herself that, and is raising her grandchildren.
“Duffels for Kids” is a truly foster parent grassroots movement that has swept Florida and the nation! So hop on to the bandwagon and join the team!
We interviewed the key players in the organization of this event so read on…
Q and A with former foster kid and Duffels for Kids Spokesperson, Ms. Margaret Luculano:
Margaret Luculano, spokeswoman for Duffels for Kids, www.floridafapa.org/duffelsforkids and founder of Angels for Foster Kids, says that sometimes, it’s
the smallest things foster children remember most.
“I was in foster care from age 11 to 16, when I aged out, and I was moved to 15 different homes in that time,” she says. “Every time I moved, I had to pack my
few belongings in a black trash bag. She shares,“When you’re already feeling abandoned, wondering whether anyone will ever want you or care about you,
that trash bag seals it: No, they won’t. You’re a throwaway.”
Q. What made you interested in launching the duffel bags for foster kid’s project in Florida?
A. As a former foster child I know how it feels to move from home to home without any luggage to carry your personal belongings - it is my hope that all
children who enter the system will receive a duffel bag in the near future.
Q. What changes would you like to see in the current condition of foster kids across the country?
A. I'd like to see more quality foster parents enter the system along with compensation changes for child welfare staff where both parties are compensated for
performance and outcomes of the child such as graduation from high school and college planning for all.
Q. How can the foster care network and interested philanthropists support the walk on May 18?
A. Help fund raise and or make donations that allow more duffel bags to be purchased. You can sign up for virtual walker if you cannot physically attend the
walk.
Q & A with Florida Foster Parent Association President, Ms. LaShaun Wallace:
Q. What drew you to the project?
A. Duffels for Kids developed out of a true desire to help children who come into the system with barely anything to call their own. When we picked up our first
foster child in 2008, the agency handed us a big trash bag, along with the baby. My husband and I aren't prudes by any means but this was so foreign to us that
we did not know where the items in the bag came from and whether they should be thrown away or washed. Needless to say, this was not something covered in
our foster parent training classes!
Fast forward a few years later and I was fortunate to hear about a duffel bag project starting in Indiana by Dr. Kalyani Gopal. Dr. Gopal had contacted the
National Foster Parent Association -- where I am member services chair -- for support and through many conversations with her, I realized that this was
something that every state should embrace. Because I live in Florida -- and I am also involved with the Florida State Foster/Adoptive Parent Association -- it
was only natural for me to start there.
Q. How do you envision this project nationally in the future, what other sources would you like to reach?
I envision this being a successful project nationally, with the right amount state foster parent association support and corporate backing. There is no doubt in
my mind that it is needed but there will need to be strong support from the local and state foster parent associations in each state. This is a year-round project
-- and a major undertaking -- but more than anything, we need to change the thinking that it is OK for a child in care to have belongings in a trash bag in the
first place.
Q. In your personal experience with foster care, how do you see these children benefiting from the Duffels for Kids Project?
Imagine going for an overnight visit with a relative or friend. Would you take a trash bag as your luggage? What if you HAD to? It is almost unconscionable to
think that children in care WANT to carry trash bags into a new home. These children have already lost so much … they do not need to lose this small sense of
dignity as well. Granted, the duffels may not seem like much to someone who hasn't lost his or her family, but to these children, it could mean the difference
between feeling like they're being thrown away and having something -- however small -- to call their own in an unfamiliar environment.
Q. What support can organizations and foundations invested in foster care provide for this project?
Duffels for Kids accepts monetary donations, as well as donations of new duffel bags. We want to emphasize new because so many of the children already
receive hand-me-downs from siblings, other children in care, consignment shops, etc. so they deserve a new bag.
Q. How can you be reached for the walkathon? How can organizations contribute?
I can be reached at info@floridafapa.org or 954.699.0844. Organizations can contribute by visiting our website at www.floridafapa.org/duffelsforkids.
If you can't be there physically, consider signing up as a virtual walker.
Register for the event as a virtual walker if you cannot physically attend.
Support the Florida Foster Parent Association, EMSI and Aid for Change by registering today!
Owner/Editor - Chris Chmielewski