A nonprofit called Together We Rise has set its goal to change the way kids experience foster care. They allow the public to help out with three main programs; “Sweet cases, Build a bike, and Family Fellowship.” The sweet cases are bags that these children can have, filled with items such as blankets, teddy bears, hygiene kids, coloring books, etc. The Build a Bike program help to provide children a mode of transportation once out of the foster system, and Family Fellowship is a scholarship foundation that benefits those who have aged out of the system.

Their website reads, “To help foster kids have more positive experiences, we have volunteers like you decorate stuff, and donate Sweet Cases all over the United States. Our Sweet Cases are blue duffel bags stuffed with a teddy bear, a blanket, a hygiene kit, a coloring book, and crayons. Participants can purchase our Sweet Cases to be donated, which directly supports the children in foster care in their areas. Together We Rise wants children in foster care to feel like kids, not trash. No child deserves to carry their belongings in trash bags, so we send our Sweet Cases to those in need all over the country.”

Mrs. Crawford-Smick is working to donate some of these bags with her Independent Family and Living Class and says, “The campaign we choose is called Sweet Cases. We choose the name Sweet Cases for Sweet Faces for our project. This campaign allows the partnering organizations to order, fundraise, decorate the bags, and deliver them to local foster kids.

So far, the class’s efforts have allowed them to raise $470, with $25 per Sweet Case rate, and $15 for decorative supplies. In total they have raised enough for 18 Sweet Cases. They fundraised by setting up a page where anyone could donate to their cause, and they exceeded their goal by $70.

Crawford-Smick says that what comes next is them receiving the kits for decoration. This will take place around the week of March 19th. She also says “In addition to the items Together We Rise provides in the kit, my students want to add fuzzy socks, crayons, and a few other items they have not decided on yet. We would love to have NHHS students help us with that effort.”