Dec. 12, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by Central Bank.

The wish lists are as individual as the kids and the journeys behind them.

For 5-year-old Krew, it’s a remote-controlled car.

For 17-year-old Elizabeth, it’s a Taylor Swift sweatshirt.

Twelve-year-old Juan is hoping for Nike shoes and a Hy-Vee gift card.

And 14-year-old Chloe’s list includes pajamas and anything that makes noise and lights up.

These kids are among at least 900 in the Sioux Falls area whose personalized Christmas wishes are waiting to be granted, thanks to a growing effort from The Foster Network.

The Sioux Falls-based nonprofit is in the final stages of its annual “Give Joy This Christmas” campaign.

“Last year, we provided around 700 gifts, and this year, we’ve already had 897 requests, and there are still kids entering foster care, so we’ll be over 900 gifts,” said Kristen Rhoades, interim board chair.

“Any child placed with parents that aren’t biological can use our services.”

Families began submitting lists in October, including those with foster children and those who are providing care to children who are related to them in other ways, including grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Teachers and church members have been suggesting gifts too.

“We get the dream list, and then we start trying to fill it,” Rhoades said. “And since it’s a true wish list, they’re getting exactly what the kids want.”

The program was new to Christina Hoy when she moved to Sioux Falls after serving as a foster parent in Maryland. She and her husband recently adopted a 4-year-old and 2-year-old boy who had lived with them in foster care.

They began as foster parents on the East Coast about eight years ago “because I was a stay-at-home parent with little kids at home, and there’s not a lot of ways you can be connected to the community and be part of the solution when you’ve got little kids at home,” she said.

“It was a way I could fill an empty spot in my van and my house and be part of the community.”

They signed up for their first foster children in Sioux Falls in late 2022, and The Foster Network “was great,” she said. “They still figured out a way to make sure our two little boys got Christmas done for them.”

This year, the boys are asking for magnetic blocks, trains and preschool board games.

“They still play with the toy cars and a car rug they got last year,” Hoy added. “It’s helpful, and it lets us make sure we can allocate resources differently. The emotional impact of knowing the community is supporting our efforts in foster care is even more significant than the financial impact for me personally. And for a lot of families, it significantly changes what their holidays can look like. I think it makes a huge difference. There are some hard days as a foster parent, and it helps knowing our community cares about the situation these kids are in and the families caring for them.”

For the families, “it’s a huge relief knowing the Christmas season is covered,” Rhoades said. “The Christmas season in general is really, really tough on kids not with their biological parents, so this is one way to support them through a very challenging time of year.”

There’s still time to choose a virtual tag off this website, buy a gift and return it to the Foster Network at 620 S. Cliff Ave. It’s open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m today and Friday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. You also can make a cash donation online, and volunteers will shop for gifts on the unclaimed tags.

The effort was supported this year by Central Bank with a donation on Giving Tuesday, and the bank plans to become more involved with The Foster Network in the year ahead.

“We are grateful for the opportunity to support The Foster Network, especially during this special time of year,” said Joe Gannon, senior vice president and Sioux Falls market president.

“We are blessed to help fulfill the wishes for these children, hoping to make their Christmas and holidays a little brighter.”

If you’d like to do the shopping yourself, donations need to be in by Monday, Dec. 16. In addition to taking them to The Foster Network, you also can drop them in the lobby of Scooter’s Coffee locations at 5009 S. Western Ave., 7710 S. Dakota Hawk Ave. and 6503 W. 41st St.

Outside of the holiday season, The Foster Network offers a variety of services to families, including The Closet, where kids in foster care can receive clothing and other necessities. Staffed by volunteers, it’s a great option for donating time or resources year-round.

“We are here to support the whole foster family,” Rhoades said.

“We do that through tangible resources like clothing but also emotional support. No kid makes it through foster care without some sort of trauma, and being a foster parent can be really isolating. So we’re here to help both kids and parents know they’re not alone. There are others going through this, and we can all support each other.”

To connect with The Foster Network, click here.