2021 Holiday Heroes: Community Comes Together to Provide a Happy Holiday to Thousands of Displaced Children
This Christmas, the Children’s Foundation of America (CFA) provided gifts to 2,175 displaced children at 19 different organizations. Fifty participating businesses, along with several individuals, collected nearly $60,000 worth of toys and gifts for children in need this holiday season.
The Claremont Village Marketing Group encouraged businesses of Claremont’s downtown district to participate, contributing 20 locations to our overall total. Claremont Toyota hosted a toy drive and holiday fundraiser at their location. Montclair Place hosted a Giving Tree at their mall, Plume Ridge Bottle Shop donated a toy for every gift set sold and various other businesses, schools and service groups contributed to the campaign.
Board Member, Christina Jackson, worked miracles again this year gathering her network of Santa’s elves to contribute over $11,000 worth of gifts for children in need this Christmas. Long-time supporter, Jorge Merlos, was also a real hero this Christmas gathering his community from SouthPaw Bill, Integrity Home Finance, Altar Tattoo and more in collecting over $13,000 worth of toys.
A warm thank you also goes out to Char Constantino and her team at CG Realtors for their participation and spreading awareness about children in foster care. Image Source also campaigned to raise thousands of dollars in support of youth in group homes and in foster care.
Though we were not able to host our gift wrapping fundraiser at the mall this year due to the continuing pandemic, Lion’s Heart Service conducted a small gift wrapping booth at the Claremont Packing House in partnership with Claremont Gallery, an artist market held weekly in the Packing House atrium. In addition, we held a Virtual Gala and Online Auction hosted by CFA CEO, Cher Ofstedahl and featuring Hallmark leading lady and foster care advocate, Jen Lilley. Through our various fundraising efforts, we were able to raise over $43,000 in support of children in need this holiday season!
These funds were used to provide holiday festivities for foster families and group homes. A drive-thru experience was held where families received gingerbread houses, pies, food, hot chocolate and other festive giveaways, plus children got to visit and take a photo with Santa. Holiday treat bags, gift cards, magician and a Christmas dinner was provided to youth in group homes. Funds also purchased gift wrap for the toys distributed through our campaign and purchased any additional gifts needed. Remaining funds will continue to support these children’s wishes and needs throughout the year, including scholarships, grants and specific requests.
Twenty-five dedicated volunteers contributed a combined total of 113 hours packing and distributing gifts for children in foster care, group homes, shelters, underserved school districts, crisis centers and more. What we were able to accomplish this year would not have been possible without the participation of our generous community. Thank you so much for all you do for the children we serve.
Thank you to our gift drive participants: Amelie Claremont, Be Rosie Salon, Bert & Rocky’s Ice Cream, Bunny Gunner, Centers for Spiritual Living, CG Realtors, Christina Jackson, CLA (Clifton, Larson, Allen), Caleres, Claremont Chamber, Claremont Chef’s Academy, Claremont Craft Ales, Claremont Toyota, Claremont Village Eatery, CPP Office of Academic Innovation, Dani & Ronnie, Diamond Wipes INT, DoubleTree Ontario, Enterprise, EPICycle Studios, FDS Manufacturing Co (Pomona), Full Circle Home Loans, Gaf Roofing, Hendrick’s Pharmacy, Honeybird LA, I Like Pie Bakeshop, Image Source USA, Jorge Merlos and Integrity Home Finance, International Vitamin Corp, JMC Engineering, Kiddie Academy, Lumen Spa, Pomona Catholic High School (Make a Wish Club), Middle Tree, Mijac Alarm, Mira Loma, Montclair Place, Packing House Wines, Plume Ridge Bottle Shop, Rev’d Up Coffee, Sanctuary Coffee, Scripps College, Sonja Stump Photography, The Diamond Center, The Grove Clothing, The Grove Home, The Treatment, The Village Postmark, T Street Volleyball, Village Dance Arts, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, and West Coast Dermatology Billers.
Organizations Supported: Riverside USD, Ark Family Homes, Ontario Montclair School District, McKinley Children’s Center, Trinity Youth Services, Pathways, Fields Comprehensive, New Life Foster Family Agency, San Bernardino County Schools, St Anne’s, Advantage Foster Family Agency, Building Bridges Foster Family Agency, Shoes That Fit, Crittenton Foster Care, Olive Crest, Serenity Foster Care & Adoptions, Citrus Elementary, Mission Elementary, and Concerned Citizens for the Development of North Fontana.
Jenelle Phillips, Director of Development
Jenelle oversees the day-to-day operations and staffing of the Foundation, which includes event planning, volunteer coordination, community outreach, marketing and donor relations. Above all, Jenelle’s focus is to identify and access resources in order to help children heal, learn and thrive. She earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from California State University Fullerton and is very involved in the community. She is active in her church and owns an art gallery. Her volunteer contributions to the community have been recognized by Senator Portantino, Assemblymember Holden and the Claremont Village Marketing Group.
CFA Giving Tree is Back at Montclair Place!
The Children’s Foundation of America will once again host a Giving Tree at Montclair Place located at 5060 N Montclair Plaza Ln, Montclair.
Customers can pick a wish tag from the Giving Tree, stationed near Santa at the center of the mall, and shop for a child in need while holiday shopping. Each wish tag includes a child’s name, age, and Christmas wishes. The deadline to drop off gifts to the collection box next to the Giving Tree is December 20, 2021.
The Children’s Foundation of America’s mission is to provide an opportunity for every person to help children heal, learn and thrive so they may lead healthy, productive lives. Children supported live in out-of-home placement such as foster care, shelters, crisis centers and more. These trauma-affected children have experienced abuse, neglect or abandonment. The goal of the holiday campaign is to provide the hope and joy of the season to 2,000 local needy children.
To learn more about the Children’s Foundation of America, contact 800.KIDS.730, donations@trinityys.org, or visit www.ChildrensFoundationOfAmerica.org/holidayheroes.
CFA’s ‘Holiday Heroes’ Supports 2,000 Children Despite COVID Crisis
For the second year in a row, the Children’s Foundation of America (CFA) supported over 2,000 children during the 2020 Holiday Heroes campaign. The need was greater this Christmas in the midst of economic hardship, civil unrest and pandemic. Striving to support as many children in need as possible, CFA teamed up with the following 20 agencies to provide the children they serve with gifts for the holidays:
Trinity Youth Services
Ark Family Homes
Building Bridges Foster Family Agency
Fields Comprehensive
Concerned Citizens for the Development of North Fontana
Olive Crest
A Greater Hope Foundation
Goodwill Industries International
Inland Temporary Homes
McKinley Children’s Center
San Bernardino County Schools
Upland Unified School District
Shoes That Fit
Ontario Montclair School District
Crittenton Foster Care
Riverside Unified School District
St Anne’s
Serenity Foster Care & Adoptions
House of Ruth
Citrus Elementary School
Each organization was invited to a special, socially-distanced event to pick up donations from our warehouse. We had a schedule to stagger pick-ups, but made sure to lift holiday spirits for the children-serving staff and volunteers. Something we all had in common was our absolute gratitude in being able to help children who need it most during the most trying of times.
Our Holiday Heroes gift drive did look a little different this year but that did not stop our supporters from spreading the holiday cheer. CFA partnered with 44 organizations and individuals who generously helped us collect toys:
Toshiba
MetLife
Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Lewis LLP.
Image Source USA
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage
Mijac Alarm
JCM Engineering
CG Realtors
Christina Jackson and friends
Scripps College
Plume Ridge Bottle Shop
CLA
Montclair Place
Ahava Chiropractic
Agape Movement Christian Church
Wynder Law Inc.
Jorge Merlos/Integrity Home Finance/MBM Credit Solutions
Be Rosie Salon
Gaf Roofing
Endless Fitness
Inter Valley Health Plan
Enterprise
Cal Rod Car Club
Hilti Stores
FDS Manufacturing
JDM Carboy
With the help of our amazing gift drive locations, we were able to collect nearly $75,000 worth of toys and gifts for displaced youth. Special recognition to CFA board member Christina Jackson and her network of friends, Jorge Merlos of Integrity Home Finance, CFA board member Carla Kingsbury of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage, and Darlene Berg from Endless Fitness, for their consistent hard work in advocating for our campaign.
Claremont Village Marketing Group (CVMG) organized a car show and toy drive with Cal Rods Car Club, where they collected two trucks worth of toys for our campaign. CVMG also coordinated with the downtown shopping district to hold a toy drive in partnership with the City of Claremont. 18 participants collected over $10,000 worth of toys for children in need:
The Diamond Center
The Village Postmark
Claremont Chef’s Academy
Tina G Cosmetics
Bunny Gunner
I Like Pie
The Grove Vintage
Bert & Rocky’s Ice Cream
Claremont Village Eatery
Aromatique
Hendrick’s Pharmacy
Village Dance Art
Nekter Juice Bar
Lumen Spa
Middle Tree
Ronnie M. Layering Bar
Sonja Stump Photography
Studio C
Montclair Place once again partnered with us for our Holiday Heroes campaign even though we were not able to hold our annual gift wrapping fundraiser this year due to the pandemic. Instead, a Giving Tree filled with tags featuring children’s holiday wishes was arranged at the center of the mall next to Santa, who sat behind plexiglass this year. The Montclair Place toy drive raised over $6,000 worth of holiday gifts for children in need.
Image Source raised $10,000 for our campaign, which was used to purchase noise canceling head phones for foster youth during distanced learning. “Online learning has been a challenge for our youth,” said Dr. Sherman Mitchell, Residential Campus Director at Trinity Youth Services. “Statistics show that for advanced learners, online classes are a terrific option, but academically challenged students need a classroom with a teacher’s support.”
It is times like these were children in the foster care system fall harder than their peers. “Times have changed. To do better in school, you can no longer sit at the front of the classroom to hear and see better. Now, you must have a better monitor, better speakers, and good internet connection,” said Jim Adams, Director of Mental Health Services at Trinity Youth Services. “The new headphones will allow the youths to better hear, and be heard in their classrooms.” Thanks to Image Source, 200 foster youth will be provided headphones to help them with their studies. On top of their generous donation, Image Source also collected toys for our gift drive!
CFA coordinated with an anonymous donor who contributed $20,000 at Christmas time. Thanks to their generosity, we were able to provide residential campuses with video game consoles, controllers and games, speaker with microphones for talent shows, arcade basketball game for a rec room, air hockey tables and a BBQ grill. Foster youth who live on residential campuses have been on lock down since March 2020 and are experiencing boredom like never before. Gifts like these help keep youth occupied, active and engaged. “They couldn’t have come at a better time,” said Recreational Coordinator Cathleen Duran. “The youth were so excited to receive their PlayStations and couldn’t wait to play the NBA 2021 game, since many held Kobe close to their hearts (who passed away in a helicopter crash in early 2020). Times are tough right now and this donation really helped keep our youth happy during the holidays.”
We were also able to purchase Amazon, Footlocker, Game Stop, fast food gift cards and chocolate bars for 100 foster teens isolating in residential care. We purchased new bikes, scooters, and skateboards for an additional 100 children in foster care. The donation from our anonymous donor also allowed us to provide resource families with game night packs to help pass the time isolating at home.
CFA also helped make it possible for foster care offices to to provide drive-thru holiday festivities and gift distribution with Santa Claus for resource families in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Rentals were required for drive-thru coverage and heating because all activities were held safely outside. Children were provided their toys from our gift drive and families received food for their holiday meals. Social workers conducted drive-thru game and photo booths for the children to enjoy through their car window.
Thank you to everyone who made our campaign a success. It is thanks to you that over 2,000 children in need were able to celebrate the holidays despite a terrible pandemic. For questions or to get involved, contact donations@trinityys.org or 800.KIDS.730. Thank you to our sponsors:
Claremont Lincoln University
Valarie Martinez and VMA Communications
Claremont Toyota
Sheri Nagel
Isabel Millward-Pena
Isabel contributes content for our social media, blog, newsletters and promotional materials. She recently earned a bachelor’s degree in English from California State University San Bernardino and is currently working on her master’s degree. Isabel began working with our team as an intern and, luckily for us, never left. Isabel primarily works as Clerical for Trinity Youth Services. Prior to her work there, she was a substitute instructional aid and a supervisor at Starbucks. She has also volunteered as an aid at local elementary schools and notably achieved “Partner of the Quarter” at Starbucks in 2017.
Holiday Heroes Gala & Online Auction
Buy Tickets! Watch on YouTube Online Auction
Join us on Thursday, December 1, 2022 at the Laemmle Claremont Movie Theatre for a special screening of the Children’s Foundation of America’s 2022 Holiday Heroes Virtual Gala and Online Auction as part of our annual Holiday Heroes Campaign to benefit children who have been removed from their homes due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment. The Foundation supports these children in out-of-home-care placements, such as foster care, residential therapeutic programs, and mental health settings.
The Foundation was created to Be the Difference and to provide trauma-affected children with the necessary programs and services to help them heal, learn, and thrive. The proceeds from this special online fundraising event will provide services like tutoring, art therapy, college scholarships, emancipation or transitional living assistance, and holiday festivities and gifts for children in foster care.
The public is invited to help make the holidays brighter for children in need by participating in our 2022 Holiday Heroes Virtual Gala and Online Auction, which will also be streamed live on YouTube on December 1 with online auction in conjunction.
Those who attend our gala in person at the Laemmle Claremont Movie Theatre will be provided a drink and popcorn! General admission is $20 or guests can bring a new, unused and unwrapped gift valued at $20 and gain entry.
The Virtual Gala hosted by Cher Ofstedahl, features special guests including children and families served through our programs, Princess Sarah Culberson (humanitarian, author, advocate), Jen Lilley (Hallmark Channel, Days of Our Lives, General Hospital), and John Neiuber (Chair, Board of Trustees).
Buy Tickets! Watch on YouTube Online Auction
Thank you to our sponsors:
Sharon Nagel and John & Karen Neiuber
CFA’s 2019 Holiday Heroes Campaign Brought Hope and Joy to Over 2,000 Children
The Children’s Foundation of America (CFA) left 2019 strong, serving 2,067 children in need during our Holiday Heroes campaign! Children varying from foster care, residential therapeutic programs, shelters, under-served community centers, or identified by school districts as in need, were supported through 14 organizations.
Organizations Served:
Trinity Youth Services
Ontario Montclair School District
McKinley Children’s Center
Oak Grove Center
David and Margaret Youth and Family Services
A Grater Hope Foundation
Inland Temporary Homes
New Dawn Group Home
San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools
Upland Unified School District
St. Anne’s
House of Ruth
Concerned Citizens for the Development
Building Bridges Foster Family Agency
One of the organizations we supported thanked us stating, “The holidays are a complex time for foster children. The season can be painful as they remember the family and friends they are apart from,” said A Greater Hope Director of Development, Amanda Bell. “Your support made them rejoice, laugh, smile and even sing, leaving them with memories to last a lifetime. For this, I am truly grateful,” she said.
We are greatly appreciative to Montclair Place for once again hosting us at their mall to conduct our Holiday Heroes Gift Wrap Station and Fundraiser. This year, we raised over $5,000 in gift wrapping donations! Thank you to the amazing Montclair Place management and marketing team as well as our wonderful neighboring businesses who supported our cause through the holidays.
This year, we were helped by 272 volunteers, who spent a total of 875.25 hours of their time wrapping gifts at our mall fundraiser, prepping for our campaign, and distributing gifts at the warehouse. We were so grateful to businesses and service groups like Lion’s Heart, Wells Fargo and DoubleTree by Hilton for forming teams filling full days of shifts! Sysco generously provided snacks and bottled water for all of our volunteers.
With the help of our amazing gift drive locations, we were able to collect nearly $60,000 worth of toys and gifts for displaced youth. One special donor, who wishes to remain anonymous, provided Footlocker gift cards for each of the foster teens on our list to pick out new shoes for Christmas. This was a big request among the age group this year and we were so happy to have a partner to fulfill this need! Special recognition goes to Jorge Merlos of Integrity Home Finance, Dr. Robert Rosas of Ahava Chiropractic, and Kevin Mink of Image Source USA for going above and beyond to advocate for children in need and encouraging others to join them in being the difference.
Gift Drive Locations:
Toshiba
MetLife
Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Lewis LLP.
Image Source USA
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage
Mijac Alarm
JCM Engineering
NRI Distribution
The Hillman Group
The Costantino Group
Scripps College
Claremont Center for Spiritual Living
Plum Ridge Bottle Shop
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Claremont
White, Nelson, Diehl, Evans LLP
Ben Bridge Jewelers
Ahava Chiropractic
Agape Movement Christian Church
Casa Moreno
Laemmle Movie Theater Claremont
Wynder Law Inc.
Foothill Learning Annex
Christina Jackson
Sandals Church
Jorge Merlos/Integrity Home Finance/MBM Credit Solutions
Riverside Cars & Coffee/San Bernardino Spartans
City of Claremont Council Member Ed Reece
The success of this year’s campaign would not have been possible without the help of our volunteers, gift drive locations, sponsors and donors. All funds raised during the campaign were used to provide the kids with holiday festivities and will be used to provide support to children in need for the year to come. Thank you to everyone who helped to bring hope and joy to children who need it most.
2019 Holiday Heroes Sponsors:
Claremont Lincoln University
AMC Solutions
Claremont Rotary
Isabel Millward-Pena
Isabel contributes content for our social media, blog, newsletters and promotional materials. She recently earned a bachelor’s degree in English from California State University San Bernardino and is currently working on her master’s degree. Isabel began working with our team as an intern and, luckily for us, never left. Isabel primarily works as Clerical for Trinity Youth Services. Prior to her work there, she was a substitute instructional aid and a supervisor at Starbucks. She has also volunteered as an aid at local elementary schools and notably achieved “Partner of the Quarter” at Starbucks in 2017.
Holiday Heroes Gift Drive
Bringing Holiday Joy To Children In Need
The mission of the Children’s Foundation of America is to provide an opportunity for every person to help children lean, learn and thrive by supporting children affected by abuse, neglect or abandonment. Join our Holiday Heroes campaign to help thousands of local displaced youth in foster care, residential therapeutic programs, shelters, under-served communities, and children identified by their school as in-need. The circumstances these children face is beyond their control. Help a child feel loved and cherished during the holidays. Contact the Children’s Foundation of America at 800.KIDS.730 or donations@trinityys.org.
Shop Our Wish List!
Collection Locations
Donate a new, unwrapped gift for ages 0-18. Each year we provide thousands of children with holiday gifts of their very own. Help us share the joy of the season to children in need! Collection Locations:
Children’s Foundation of America
Donations can be shipped or dropped off Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
201 N. Indian Hill Blvd. Ste. 200, Claremont (Door code: 1966)
Montclair Place
Drop off at our gift wrapping store at the main entrance near the Verizon store and Santa Claus!
5060 N. Montclair Plaza Ln. #5090, Montclair, CA 91763
Claremont Village
Visit various locations in Claremont’s downtown shops to drop off gifts.
Participating Locations
EPICycle Studios
8443 Haven Ave. #107, Rancho Cucamonga
Sanctuary Coffee
863 W. Foothill Blvd., Claremont
Be Rosie Salon
849 W. Foothill Blvd., Claremont
Human Element Realty
405 W. Foothill Blvd #203, Claremont
Claremont Craft Ales
1420 N. Claremont Blvd. #204C, Claremont
Centers for Spiritual Living
509 S. College Ave., Claremont
DoubleTree Ontario
222 Vineyard Ave., Ontario
Thank you to our Gift Drive Partners!
Volunteer Spotlight: Lion’s Heart Service
Lion’s Heart Service is a nonprofit group that curates, creates, and encourages opportunities for teens and children to get involved in their community. Their Upland chapter rigorously donates their time to making a difference, accumulating a total of 77 volunteer hours with the Children’s Foundation of America since their chapter was founded in 2017. They’ve volunteered at rescue centers, senior homes, local food banks, churches and various other organizations.
With the Foundation, Lion’s Heart has assisted in our Back-to-School drive and our Holiday Heroes campaign.
Chapter Coordinator Sylvia Tam, is dedicated to creating a culture of giving in both her community and family. “I have to have a leadership mind set, so I can create a community of helpers,” she said. Through Lion’s Heart, Sylvia’s children and group “don’t have to think twice about volunteering. Our group goes wherever needed.”
Sylvia’s daughter, Vanessa Wong, founded their chapter to encourage the people around her to get involved. “Friendship is her priority and she wanted to do something as a team. Volunteering is always on her mind,” Sylvia said.
In 2018, the Upland City Council recognized Lion’s Heart members Vanessa Wong, Alyssa Mao and Karis Yoon with the Presidential Volunteer Service Award for accumulating 75-100 volunteer hours. Benjamin Wong, Sylvia’s son and frequent Lion’s Heart volunteer, also received an award from the Kiwanis Club.
Creating a culture of giving
Lion’s Heart holds leadership and gratitude as their core values. Teaching youth to volunteer in their free time is invaluable to Lion’s Heart. Sylvia’s hope is to spread awareness about the many volunteer opportunities. “I tell the adults you have to get your kids out there and do this,” she said. “There are so many parents who want to get their families involved in volunteering and don’t know where and how.” Lion’s Heart and the Children’s Foundation of America can help!
Sylvia believes there are some real benefits to volunteering, saying, “It is a form of therapy, to zoom out of the business world and find some happiness in what we’re doing in the moment.” She said working with the Foundation is “is great, because it’s helping kids that are at a turning point in their lives, where they can go forward.” She stressed that volunteering benefits everyone involved, boosting needed skills that transfer to all areas of work and life.
Syvlia’s Lion’s Heart group is passionate about being involved, and the children “choose volunteering as their top priority.” CFA is supported by great volunteers like Sylvia and Lion’s Heart. If you would like to know more about getting your service group involved, click here!
Jose Rojas, CFA Intern
Jose is an English literature major at California State University San Bernardino. As a CFA intern, Jose attends and photographs events and writes for our blog. He has previously volunteered with The Prison Library Project. In his free time, you can catch him playing tennis or cramming for his next exam.
1,800 Children Served Through 2018 CFA Holiday Heroes Campaign
This December, the Children’s Foundation of America provided holiday gifts to 1,800 displaced children. Youth served were in foster care, residential therapeutic programs, shelters, under-served community centers, or were identified by school districts as in need. This year, we partnered with the following 16 organizations to bring joy and hope to trauma-affected children:
Ark Family Homes
Ontario Montclair School District
McKinley Children’s Center
Uncommon Good
Trinity Youth Services
Oak Grove Center
Inland Empire Residential
Fields Comprehensive
Greater Hope Foundation
Inland Temporary Homes
New Dawn Group Home
San Bernardino County Schools
Upland Unified School District
St. Anne’s
The Veteran’s Center
Pomona Unified School District
In all, 2,365 toys and other items were sorted and distributed by nearly 100 volunteers. Thanks to the community and our business partners, we raised over $19,000 in donations and collected $33,000 worth of toy donations! Thank you to this year’s box sponsors and business partners:
Heirloom Claremont
Claremont Village Marketing Group
Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard
Image Source
Wells Fargo Home Mortgage
Mijac Alarm
JCM Engineering
NRI Distribution
Scripps College
Claremont Craft Ales
Farmers Insurance
Vinmar Captial Group
Plume Ridge Bottle Shop
Sweet Obsessions Cheesecakes
Chaffey College
White Nelson Diehl Evans
Montclair Place
Foundation 4 Life
CG Realtors
Additionally, Lykes Creatives partnered with us to raise funds at Claremont’s Holiday Promenade. Donors were happy to contribute a few dollars and in exchange for a holiday themed photo by Lykes Creatives!
Without the support and generosity of our Holiday Hero volunteers and donors, the success of this campaign would not be possible. 191 volunteers contributed hours of their time to raise funds at our gift wrapping station at Montclair Place. We are so grateful to the mall for supplying a full store space for us the past two years! Funds raised provided holiday festivities to foster youth and will continue to be used throughout the upcoming year to support special requests for things like contact lenses, prom and graduation attire, yearbooks, music lessons, scholarships and more.
Jenelle Phillips, Development Specialist
Jenelle oversees the day-to-day operations and staffing of the Foundation, which includes fundraising events, volunteer coordination, community outreach and donations. Above all, Jenelle’s focus is to identify and access resources in order to help children heal, learn and thrive. She earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from California State University Fullerton and has become very involved in the community. She is active in her church, owns an art gallery, organizes the local art walk and is on the executive board of the downtown district’s marketing group.
A Holiday Message From the Executive Director
Dear Friends,
Join the Children’s Foundation of America in helping more than 1,500 children this holiday season. These children are living in foster care, residential treatment, mental health placement or shelter care. The holidays should be a time of tremendous joy for children and their families, but many of these children who have suffered abuse, neglect and other severe trauma, will rely on the compassion and care of people just like you and I to bring light and love to the holidays.
Just a small gift will make an enormous difference to a child. I am asking you to consider a donation of $10, $20, $100, or whatever you can spare to provide gifts and holiday meals to the children. 100% of all contributions to our Holiday Heroes campaign will be used by the Children’s Foundation of America to directly benefit children in need.
Together, we can positively impact the lives of so many children. Together, we can show them they are loved and cherished and remembered during this holiday season and throughout the year.
May you and your loved ones share a warm, wonderful holiday season.
With gratitude,
Cher Ofstedahl, Executive Director
Children’s Foundation of America
PO Box 1210, Claremont, CA 91711
800.KIDS.7730 | childrensfoundationofamerica.org/donate
501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization
CFA Spreads Holiday Cheer with Gift Wrapping for a Cause
As part of our ongoing “Holiday Heroes” campaign, The Children’s Foundation of America’s gift wrapping station has made several more appearances to spread joy, hope, and the opportunity to be involved in a good cause.
Hauser & Wirth
CFA was invited to participate in Hauser & Wirth’s annual Holiday Market, allowing us to extend our work into the heart of Downtown Los Angeles. Among a wide array of hand-crafted goods, artisan products and food, CFA was there to wrap gifts for donations. In addition to wrapping gifts, our volunteers sold holiday cards designed by kids at Trinity Youth Services and raised awareness about foster youth. All wrapping supplies were generously donated by Hauser & Wirth.
Montclair Place
At Montclair Place in the Inland Empire, CFA has a storefront dedicated to gift wrapping. Shoppers are encouraged to stop by and have their freshly bought gifts wrapped for donations to support foster youth. The gift wrapping supplies donated by Hauser & Wirth and The Helpful Honda People were instrumental in helping us raise funds! In a time of giving, it is paramount to support those without access to regular commodities to ensure everyone can have a happy holiday season. CFA is there to help bridge that gap and provide an a opportunity for every person to help children heal, learn, and thrive.
Thank you to all our volunteers and fellow organizations that provided donations, assistance and support to benefit children in need. Our Montclair wrapping station will be open December 14-24 during regular mall hours to provide stress-free holiday shopping, last-minute wrapping and the opportunity to volunteer, support and get involved!
Become a Holiday Hero! Contact us at 1-800-KIDS-730 or email volunteer@trinityys.org.
Story and photos by Jose Rojas
Jose is an English literature major at California State University San Bernardino. As a CFA intern, Jose primarily attends and photographs events, and writes for our blog. He has previously volunteered with The Prison Library Project. In his free time you can catch him playing tennis or cramming for his next exam.