KCMO Angels

The KCMO Angels mission is to walk alongside children, youth, and families in the foster care community by offering consistent support through intentional giving, relationship building, and mentorship. Every single child/youth who experiences foster care has the opportunity to reach their fullest potential, and every family who fosters is radically supported in their journey.

Volunteer Application: Connect: Intake Form (socialsolutionsportal.com)

​Our NORTH STAR is to change the statistics. Statistics say that youth in foster care experience higher rates of negative outcomes such as homelessness, unemployment, and incarceration compared to their peers who are not in foster care. But we believe these outcomes can change. Why? Our programs are built to create positive change, and our research validates our impact.

Our WHY is the belief that children should have a deep sense of belonging, and caregivers should be radically supported on their journey. 

THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 400,000 CHILDREN AND YOUTH EXPERIENCING FOSTER CARE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES

We are building communities of people that are changing the way children, youth, and families experience foster care. Passionate donors, volunteers, mentors, partners, and advocates are all ripples in the sea of change for our foster care community.​

​1 out of 5 foster youth become homeless at age 18

50% of foster homes close within the first year

​20,000 youth between the ages of 18-21 age out of the foster care system annually

60% of youth formerly in care fall below the poverty line, despite earning an income

​The challenges faced by foster parents and kinship caregivers, such as stress, isolation, and financial strain, can lead to instability for children in their care. Without adequate support, these caregivers may struggle to provide a stable and nurturing environment, resulting in frequent moves, disrupted education, and emotional and behavioral issues for the children. 

Our Love Box® program provides community and holistic support to fostering families, including caregivers, children experiencing foster care, and biological/adopted children. This wrap-around support empowers caregivers to continue to do the important and meaningful work of being foster parents. Each Love Box® volunteer/group will be matched with a local foster family based on location and compatibility. When our families are matched with committed volunteers who show up monthly, parents feel supported, and children gain a greater sense of normalcy, relational permanency, and self-confidence. This support also leads to increased placement stability, reducing the high rate of turnover that often occurs in the foster care system.

 When volunteer groups sign up and are trained, they are assigned a specific foster or kinship family in their area. The group commits to making a personal care package and delivers them to each child in the home as well as the foster parent(s) each month for 1 year. The financial commitment will vary based on the needs/size of the family. Items for kids in the boxes usually include items (clothes, shoes, a favorite snack, games, activity etc). Some boxes may include household supplies and food items (toilet paper, paper towels, laundry soap, snacks etc).  Others may include staple pantry items, food or gas gift cards. Large scale needs such as furniture, vehicles etc., are outside of the program parameters to be fulfilled by the Love Box team. These needs can be communicated from the family to the volunteers, and volunteer’s partner with their assigned Case KCMO Angels Case Manager to locate resources to try and fulfill these needs. Every month the foster family works with their Love Box Leader to decide on a delivery date that works best for both parties. Love Box meetings can take place anywhere but usually it is at the foster family’s home. We also encourage our Love Box groups to plan fun outings as part of the delivery, treating the family to dinner at a local restaurant, or take the whole family to the park, movie theater etc. We love when Love Box groups love outside the box!

 The Love Box is really a conduit to become a mentor or friend, who offers love, motivation & encouragement. The heart of our program is connection and relationship rather than just delivering a box. 

Sign up to volunteer and be matched with a local family providing foster care here: Connect: Intake Form (socialsolutionsportal.com)