Suitcases. I've been driving around with a dozen suitcases and duffel bags in the back seat and trunk of my car our car for the past week. To anyone who has caught a glimpse inside of the car, we've probably looked like vagabonds. But the truth of the matter is, these suitcases and bags were destined for foster care kids. Kids who otherwise would be carrying their posessions from one place to the next in plastic garbage bags. And that breaks my heart.
The collection was to help out a friend of a friend of a friend who is helping Suitcases 4 Kids in its mission to collect 14,000 suitcases for foster kids in Massachusetts over the next year. According to its Statistics page, there are over 510,000 kids in the United States under the age of 23 who are living in foster care. That's nearly as many people as you've got in the entire city of Boston. I hate to think there could possibly be that many displaced kids across the United States. While I'm not at a place in my life where I could reasonably take on a foster child myself, I could certainly root around in my attic and dig out a few unused suitcases. My friend Ehrin did the same, and my boss even bought two duffel bags for me to add to the collection--one with pink handles and another with blue. A thoughtful touch, for sure.
But back to the suitcases bumbling around in my back seat. After a day or two of carting these things around (and playing lots of phone tag with the suitcase sherpherd), I'll admit--it was tempting to just deposit them in the big Red Cross donation box in the grocery store parking lot and be done with it. Once I've committed to giving something away, I'm ready to release it--clearing my clutter while knowing that somebody else will be able to benefit from it.
But the point wasn't to put these suitcases and duffel bags into just anybody's hands. They were specifically for the foster care kids. And if I was feeling a little antsy about the donation process taking a little longer than expected, well imagine how those must kids feel.
Tonight, at last, I was able to hand over all of the bags. Still, it will probably be a little while before they make it to the foster kids. Even the best of intentions, however, becomes a process once there are adults involved (myself included). Between busy schedules, social calendars, and unexpected situations, we do our best. Patience seems to slip to the wayside when there's a to-do list involved. But in order to do good by all those anonymous kids, patience is key. Just doing something to help is what's most important.
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Live in the Boston area or anywhere near Hartford or New Haven? Have some suitcases you'd like to donate? Let me know!
_________________________________________________________________________ © 2009 Good Karma Housekeeping. Because less really is more. (Image from KiddoInfo)
