Foster care nonprofit holds first fundraiser in Bay Village

Cleveland Angels' President Gretchen Dupps speaks to guests about her personal connection to foster care and the organization's mission.

On Oct. 5 at BAYarts, a new nonprofit organization held their first fundraiser under the lights. Cleveland Angels, the first chapter of National Angels outside of the state of Texas, began their mission in the spring. The Cleveland Angels' mission is to walk alongside children in the foster care system, as well as their caretakers, by offering consistent support through intentional giving, relationship building and mentorship.  

Their first fundraiser at BAYarts was a clambake that included a silent auction, raffle prizes, personal testimonies, live music and more. Through this fundraiser, Cleveland Angels raised over $21,000.

With over 175 attendees at the clambake, the community seemed to be gleaming with generosity and passion about this new organization’s purpose. Personal testimonies from two sets of local foster-parents, and one of Cleveland Angels' own board members who experienced the foster care system as a child, were exceptionally inspirational and really helped guests to better understand the need that this organization can fill within our foster care communities here in Cleveland. All but one of Cleveland Angels' nine board members live in Bay Village, Westlake or Rocky River.

You may be asking yourself what intentional giving, relationship building and mentorship mean to this organization. Cleveland Angels defines intentional giving as the giving of thoughtful gifts and resources that meet the real needs of the child and their entire family. One way they do this is through their Love Box program, where a group of volunteers is assigned a foster family to build a relationship with by spending time with them every month. This meet-up is centered around a “Love Box” full of items the family needs.

Relationship building is devoting time and energy to foster healthy relationships that promote healing through connection. To Cleveland Angels, mentorship means equipping and empowering our communities’ children to be prepared for adult living and reach their fullest potential.

Not everybody is called to foster or adopt, but everyone can make a difference in a child’s life. If you have interest in empowering children in foster care and their caretakers to succeed, go to cleangels.org or call 440-476-0384 for more information.

Kelsey Porter

Kelsey Porter

Realtor|Chase Stasek Group brokered by eXp Realty

Cleveland Angels Nonprofit|Marketing & PR Director

kelsey.portastyle@gmail.com

(618)670-1024

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Volume 10, Issue 20, Posted 10:08 AM, 10.16.2018