The Safe Children Coalition of Sarasota, DeSoto, and Manatee counties is a not-for-profit
initiative that helps reunify families and assists in providing families with financial setbacks.
Many children and families scramble to find the perfect gift for their loved ones. Some other families
worry they may be unable to provide for their loved ones at all during the holiday season.
The Safe Children Coalition created the Foster Angels Program for families who need help with fulfilling those holiday wish lists.
Isabella Batalla, 34, said she donates every Christmas to two children who need a little extra this holiday season. She donates her time and money to helping children as she works with these foster children on a daily basis and understands their families’ financial hardships.
“I think every child deserves gifts on Christmas no matter the circumstances,” Batalla said. "This year I donated to a 1-year-old little boy and a 2-year-old little girl. I believe they were both siblings and the kiddos' foster parents asked for clothes and mats to play on.”
The Foster Angels Program works similar to the Walmart and Salvation Army Angel Tree program. A volunteer will pick a card off the Christmas tree or virtually; the card provides the child’s name,
age, ethnic background, and what they want for Christmas.
Batalla provided her insights into the
children she chooses.
“I tend to always pick the younger kids because I really love shopping for little kids’ clothes. I
like to provide toys for the children; the noisier the better,” Batalla said.
Lucy Bleckie, 26, said she works with the SCC Foster Angels Program every year. She drops off presents to the families and witnesses firsthand how the parents and children react to
their gifts.
“One family that comes to mind was a father who reunified with his two sons and stepdaughter. The children were unaware of the dropoff,” Bleckie said. “When they saw me with bags filled with presents, they ran to me and tore them open right in front of me. I saw the look of excitement on their faces, and I will never forget that.”
Jacqueline House of the Safe Children Coalition oversees the holiday program each year.
“The program started about 30 years ago; it has been a longtime tradition even before I started
working there,” House said. “We donate to over 1,000 kids each year.”
House also explained the price point for each child and the generosity of the Southwest Florida community.
“We ask sponsors to spend no more than $100; they don’t listen to us,” House said. “They
always go above and beyond for the kids.”
Several local businesses and church groups donate supplies and gifts to the children for the
program. Batalla explained that in recent years, auto dealers have donated presents.
“There is a car dealership who donates to the program every year and they give out over 100
bikes which I think is pretty generous and the teens really love getting a new bike for
Christmas,” Batalla said.
House explained that the program doesn’t just assist with foster families, but all families that are struggling this holiday season.
“I want to emphasize that it’s not just foster parents," House said. "It could be parents who have recently reunified with their kids. It could also be kids who are participating in one of our programs that helps with homeless youth such as our School House Link Program.”
Many employees who work with the SCC give their time to surprising the kids with large gift bags provided by the sponsors.
Lucy Bleckie shared an unforgettable situation where she brought happiness and
hope to a family in need. The family had no idea about the amount of presents they were going to receive, and the mother began to cry in Bleckie's arms, thanking her profusely.
“I had a grandmother and mother who were so excited to see me drop off presents for their
children. They were so overwhelmed because they didn’t realize how much stuff was going to be brought to them,” Bleckie said. “It’s just so rewarding.”
Bleckie recalled her experiences of helping families and their children find the holiday spirit.
“It’s like seeing these children in a candy shop. Their excitement is contagious,” Bleckie said.
House said that every family the program helps is incredibly grateful and the children always are surprised. She gave an example of how the guardians react when they see the gifts.
“Some of them express their thankfulness through tears in their eyes; some say if it weren’t for this program they wouldn’t have a Christmas because they don’t have the means to provide it,” House said.
The foster care program tries to prevent children from ever going into the system. House has done just that. She installed an initiative for the program in the last four years that expanded the program far beyond foster kids. She has not only helped the needs of foster children but also homeless families, low-income families, recently reunified families, and families that adopted their relatives’ children.
“Our goal is to is to keep kids from going into foster care, and once we reunify them with
families, we try to keep them from coming back into the system,” House said.
Josephine Palmieri is a student at FGCU. Her minor is Journalism.