The other day Sara Douglass, CEO of Stampin’ Up!, did a Facebook Live video as a part of Jamie Albanese’s Heart of Stampin’ Up! Award Project along with Stacy DeWitt, Executive Director of the James Storehouse organization. Jamie is a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator who said she was a foster child herself so she understands this situation. The James Storehouse organization is located in the Los Angeles, CA area (the area with the most foster children) and provides resources to children in foster care and those aging-out of foster care. 

Stampin’ Up! will donate backpacks and school supplies and we invite demonstrators and customers to join the fun! There are two ways to support Jamie’s project for James Storehouse. First, you can check out the Amazon Wishlists to donate backpacks or school supplies for foster children of all ages. The backpack wishlist can be found here and the wishlist for school supplies can be found here. Or second, you can send cards to add inside the filled backpacks. Please include a short, encouraging note and sign with your first name only. Send finished cards to: 

JAMES STOREHOUSE
3543 Old Conejo Road #105
Newbury Park, CA 91320
USA

The deadline for donation purchases and cards is 30 July 2021. 

I encourage you to watch the Facebook Live video Sara did, whether or not you want to make a donation. It will warm your heart that there are people out there trying to help these children, young and older, even into college age. The basic message is these foster children sometimes leave their home or school with only the clothes on their back, sometimes are moved around a lot, and all they want is to know that something belongs to them, hence the backpack. The organization will fill each backpack with school supplies, surprisingly the same items for all ages because that is what they have found kids of all ages need to do school projects. That was amazing to me.

If you want to do a little something, just mail a card you have made. Just write a brief, uplifting, encouraging, happy message. They said don’t mention their circumstances or anything like that. If you watch the video, they give some examples. Just sign your first name. No envelope, please, because obviously, they will go through the cards to make sure they are appropriate before putting them in the backpacks. I think they would rather have someone send just a single card or a few cards, not a whole box full of cards like some of us might have stored away. They aren’t equipped to handle quantities like that.

We all know the joy even we feel when we get a card in the mail or we have heard how much it means to others to receive a card we send. Imagine children in very difficult circumstances find a card or two in their new backpack wishing them well! Watch the video to understand what Stampin’ Up! is helping with and to bring joy to your heart!