Many foster kids have high needs from the past traumas they’ve experienced. Foster kids in our region are feeling the impact of COVID-19 in ways most of us don’t. As our city closes its doors, foster kids with high needs, and teens working service sector jobs, are most susceptible to the impact. 

Now they’re without an important source of structure as our schools have closed. Many are struggling to cope without the structure that school provides and numerous foster parents have the difficult challenge of trying to work from home while also trying to provide the structure the children need. Olive Crest is working hard to support these foster kids and their families with deliveries of groceries and meals as well as games and activities to help give the children productive ways to use their time.

In Olive Crest’s foster youth program, teens and young adults (ages 15-23) face a different set of problems. On Friday, one of their staff wrote in an email:

“One of the young women I work with, a single mom with a 1.5 year old daughter, has been commuting to work as a security guard for large events in King and Pierce county. It is her only form of income. Because large events have now been banned, she is officially out of work and will likely not resume for several months. She is actively seeking employment but so far, this has not been a fruitful endeavor, as businesses are not hiring and many are struggling to give their existing employees hours. She is one of many in this situation.”

Olive Crest teams working with older youth are working to help subsidize rent payments, help out with grocery store gift cards, and find extra tutoring for kids still in high school.

Now more than ever organizations like Olive Crest need our help. Merit Construction has made a pledge to Olive Crest and is asking you to join us in this movement. Many of these needs such as rent payments and grocery store gift cards are expenses Olive Crest had not planned. Your contribution will help fill the gap for the most urgent situations foster children and youth in our region are facing.

Ways You Can Help:

• Make an online donation

• Donate any of the items below. Please email community-pnw@olivecrest.org to arrange for drop off, as the office hours of Olive Crest’s 3 locations vary.

• Canned proteins—peanut butter, chicken, tuna

• Canned fruit, vegetables, beans, soups

• Grains—pastas, rice, macaroni and cheese

• Multi-grain cereal

• Nonperishable snacks—protein bars, dried fruit, nuts

• Lysol wipes or spray

• Hand sanitizer

• Toilet paper

• Paper towels

• Diapers and baby wipes