In the United States, 1,200 children enter foster care every day. Debbie Finer, who works in talent acquisition at CSL Behring, read that statistic earlier this year and found it heartbreaking.
Debbie also learned about an organization called the Together We Rise Foundation, which works to help children in foster care. She wanted to do something to help foster kids, and realized that as a member of a team of employees at CSL Behring that focuses on charitable initiatives, she had an opportunity to make a difference.
“We learned about the ‘Sweet Case’ duffle bag program and decided that this could be a great program for us to support,” Debbie said. According to Together We Rise, many children enter foster care only with their personal belongings stuffed into a garbage bag. One of the organization’s goals is to put an end to trash bags and provide children with a more dignified way to carry their belongings.
A team at CSL Behring raised money for the program through office raffles and invited colleagues to participate in sending 100 new “Sweet Cases” to children through Together We Rise. About 75 employees gathered in the company cafeteria to decorate new duffel bags with dinosaurs, flowers and other happy images created using stencils. Employees then filled the bags with blankets, toothbrushes, teddy bears, coloring books and crayons.
The duffel bags will be distributed to foster children close to CSL Behring’s home in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, through Together We Rise.
“Programs like this are so important for employees at CSL Behring, because together we can make such a difference. Helping others is what life is all about,” Debbie said.
To learn more about how you can organize a Sweet Cases project of your own, or contribute to helping foster children in other ways, visit www.togetherwerise.org.
