Blog

This July, our community came together in some truly remarkable and unprecedented ways.

Our fifth annual “Growing the Village Is Sweet” campaign raised a record-setting $72,453.49 to fund our work supporting foster, kinship, adoptive, and reunifying families across Northeast Kansas.

The money raised will help us expand services in the seven counties we serve, deliver Welcome Packs for children entering care, host Caregiver Nights Out and support groups for caregivers, and fund teen gift cards and other services that help families stay connected and supported on this often isolating journey.

Just as important, we introduced many new people to Foster Village Northeast KS and the families we serve. Every lemonade stand, every business partner, every gala guest, and every conversation helped spread the word that families facing foster care should never have to walk alone.

Community In Action:

This year's campaign included:

• 23 lemonade stands hosted by children, families, churches, and community groups.
• 19 local give-back businesses that donated proceeds from lemonade, special products, and community events.
• 14 financial business partners whose generosity helped make the campaign possible.
• 160+ guests at the first-ever Last Drop Gala at Maceli’s in Lawrence. 

Plus hundreds of individuals who donated, volunteered, shopped local, shared our mission, and encouraged others to get involved.

The Last Drop Gala:

This year, our Lemonade Month ended with the first-ever Last Drop Gala. The response from our community was more than we could have hoped for!

The gala, which sold out two weeks before the event, brought together more than 160 friends and supporters to celebrate what we accomplished together and to invest in the future of Foster Village Northeast KS. The gala raised $37,045.22 to support foster, kinship, adoptive, and reunifying families across Northeast Kansas.

During the evening, guests enjoyed a delicious meal, heard from local advocates and caregivers, benefited from the work of talented local artists and vendors, and learned more about how Foster Village equips, connects, and advocates for families experiencing foster care.

One of the evening's most heartfelt moments came when foster caregiver Lydia shared her family's story. She spoke about saying "yes" to children entering care and the difference it made for her as a new foster parent to have someone call and ask a simple question: "What do you need?" Her story reminded us that both practical support and caring relationships can make a difficult journey feel a little less overwhelming.

The evening was made possible by our presenting sponsor, Feldmeyer Financial, our generous sponsors, local businesses, talented vendors, the gala committee, and the many volunteers who gave their time and talents to make every guest feel welcome.

A Big Heartfelt THANK YOU

To everyone who contributed, just two simple words: thank you. Your generosity for the families in our community has blown us away. A final shout out to our sponsors, which you can find on the campaign page here.

If you'd like to continue receiving news and updates about supporting local licensed foster, kinship, adoptive, and reunifying families throughout the year, we invite you to subscribe to our monthly The Village newsletter.