Helping children in the foster care system connect with their siblings at Christmas time
For the past two years, we have worked to bring some extra Christmas joy to children in the foster care system. Sadly, most children who live in our Out of Home Care Systems (Foster, Kinship or Residential Care) are separated from their biological siblings, and many have limited contact with brothers and sisters. Some of these children only see each other once or twice a year. So, instead of giving the child in care a gift for themself, we provide them a gift to give to their siblings, helping to maintain and strengthen that bond and giving them the opportunity to carry out a warm, caring gesture.
Since running this gift giving at Christmas time, we have had wonderful feedback about the joy the children have when presenting their siblings with a gift.
“I just wanted to say how much my foster daughter appreciated the sibling gifts that we received for Christmas 2019. Having a lovely gift that she could wrap with love to give to each of her three siblings that live in two other separate homes and that she rarely sees was just wonderful for her and for them. Thank you so much!”
“Wrapping a gift for a brother she has not seen in one year! I wish the photo could show you the excitement on her face. Thanks SANCSS!”
More generally, we also link in with schools and provide Christmas gifts to families who are known to be struggling and who might otherwise go without.
