Children and families throughout Southwest Ohio are struggling. Some are struggling with mental health needs. Some are struggling to cope with life stressors. And for some, the struggle is the profound pain of abuse and neglect. You can help by getting involved in any of these ways.
Volunteer
We could not do what we do for youth and families without volunteers. If you can help once or once a month, we need you! There are so many ways you can step in on behalf of kids.
Volunteer Roles
Here are a few ways you can volunteer:
- Provide help with administrative support/clerical tasks.
- Help recruit foster families.
- Cleaning/organizing of play therapy rooms.
- Interact with children in the waiting room.
- Assist with agency events (i.e. Christmas party) for foster families.
- Assist with fundraising events.
- Provide on-site childcare for foster children during our monthly foster parent meetings. (Childcare volunteers will need to complete a Central Registry check and may need additional background checks)
- Provide meals for foster parent trainings.
- Sort and organize donated clothing for foster children.
- Solicit donations to benefit foster children served by Focus on Youth.
Age Guidelines
- 7th through 12th graders – May serve with supervision in limited serving roles.
- Adults – Can provide childcare independently provided they meet background check requirements.
Please complete the Volunteer Interest Form and someone will contact you to help you find a great fit and talk about next steps.
If you would like to provide something tangible for Focus on Youth, please click here to view our Amazon Wish List. This is a list of things that would benefit our clients or office that you can have delivered directly to us. No wish list item is too small!
Our Behavioral Health Team works with the youth who visit The West Chester Boys & Girls Club and The Edge Teen Center weekly. These items are needed to support the work we do with these youth.
All donations can be dropped off or shipped to Focus on Youth. If you have any questions please call 513-644-1030 or email adodds@focusonyouth.com.
Other Donation Needs
The Kroger Community Rewards Program donates money to Focus on Youth, Inc. when a registered Kroger Plus Card is used at any Kroger store. Kroger requires all participants to register their Kroger Plus Card. If you have registered in the past, you will need to occasionally re-register to continue participating. Go to www.Kroger.com and sign in. Click on Savings and Rewards, then click on Kroger Community Rewards. Click to View Details under the “I’m a Customer” option, click Change Organization or Re-Enroll. Enter RV068 and click Search. Select Focus on Youth, Inc. and click Enroll.
Give
Your financial support helps Focus on Youth work every day to meet the needs of children and families through our foster care, adoption, and mental health services. Everything we do is designed to help families heal, cope, and achieve permanency. You can make a difference for children throughout our community. Please donate today.
Give to Our Families
Have you ever considered giving directly to the youth and families we serve? Imagine the blessing you could be to our community when you provide things like:
- Free haircuts to youth in foster care
- Daycare scholarships
- Discounts for foster families at your place of business
- Sponsorships for a team or club
- Scholarships for gymnastics, music or art classes, camps, and field trips
- Jobs for teens in foster care
- Holiday gifts
- The basics for newly placed kids, such as: clothing, car seats, toys, toiletry kits, school supplies, diapers, formula, and even non-basics like musical instruments or swing sets.
Let us help coordinate your giving. Please reach out to us via email at AskUsHow@focusonyouth.com. Scanning the QR Code will launch an email as well.
Pray
As a faith-based organization, we believe in the power of prayer. In fact, one of the most effective things you can do to support us and our mission is to pray. Here are a few specific things you can pray for:
- Comfort for those children and parents who are hurting or grieving
- Healing for families who are involved in the child welfare system
- When reunification with birth parents is not feasible, that God will provide a forever family for children who need one
- Guidance in our daily decision-making
- God’s continued provision for the services we provide
- Increased resources from local, state, and federal government to provide care for children and families in need.