State House Partners With Child Advocacy Group
February 7, 2018 at 6:57 p.m.
By Staff Report-
The Indiana House of Representatives partnered with the Indiana Association of Resources and Child Advocacy and its Institute for Excellence, a nonprofit organization serving more than 4,600 Hoosier children every day, to host the “Bags of Hope” event.
House lawmakers and staff held a donation drive at the Statehouse and collected over 3,800 items for foster families caring for newborns and infants, including diapers, diaper bags, wet wipes, blankets, clothes and toys. Together with IARCA, more than 100 diaper bags were filled to be distributed to local foster families.
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“There is a growing number of children in our foster care system and we need more people stepping in to care for them,” Wolkins said. “If you are not in a position to become a foster parent, you can still donate your time and resources to organizations like Big Brothers Big Sisters that support foster kids.”
According to the Department of Child Services, the number of children in out-of-home care jumped from 13,811 in September 2015 to 17,214 just two years later. Wolkins said much of this increase is due to the escalating opioid epidemic.
“More than half of these children have a parent with substance abuse problems,” Wolkins said. “The opioid epidemic only exacerbates the issue.”
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The Indiana House of Representatives partnered with the Indiana Association of Resources and Child Advocacy and its Institute for Excellence, a nonprofit organization serving more than 4,600 Hoosier children every day, to host the “Bags of Hope” event.
House lawmakers and staff held a donation drive at the Statehouse and collected over 3,800 items for foster families caring for newborns and infants, including diapers, diaper bags, wet wipes, blankets, clothes and toys. Together with IARCA, more than 100 diaper bags were filled to be distributed to local foster families.
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“There is a growing number of children in our foster care system and we need more people stepping in to care for them,” Wolkins said. “If you are not in a position to become a foster parent, you can still donate your time and resources to organizations like Big Brothers Big Sisters that support foster kids.”
According to the Department of Child Services, the number of children in out-of-home care jumped from 13,811 in September 2015 to 17,214 just two years later. Wolkins said much of this increase is due to the escalating opioid epidemic.
“More than half of these children have a parent with substance abuse problems,” Wolkins said. “The opioid epidemic only exacerbates the issue.”
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