Thanks to the incredible generosity of our donors, over 200 children in Foster in Texas (FIT), are kicking off the 2024-2025 school year beaming with confidence, joy and the tools they need to succeed.
The start of a new school year should be an exciting time, but for many children in foster care, it can be a yearly challenge if they lack basic school supplies. Your incredible generosity allowed Upbring to provide vital resources and wraparound support for the children we serve. You showed up in incredible ways—purchasing school supplies, sponsoring backpacks, and volunteering your time to pack them. Every action you took sent a powerful message of care and encouragement.
For this, we cannot thank you enough.
This year’s Back-to-School Drive, which began in June and concluded in July, was a resounding success, all because of you. Your generosity allowed Upbring to provide vital resources and wraparound support for the children we serve. You showed up in incredible ways—purchasing school supplies, sponsoring backpacks, and volunteering your time to pack them. Every action you took sent a powerful message of care and encouragement.
Your dedication was especially felt at our backpack stuffing event at Upbring’s Austin headquarters. Volunteers, including donors and employees, came together to fill each backpack—not just with supplies, but with hope and love.
LeAnn Fuentes and her children helped stuff backpacks, saying, “It was truly a pleasure working alongside such compassionate and dedicated individuals and such generous volunteers, and I loved sharing the experience with my children. Filling backpacks is so much more than providing necessary supplies for children. It’s about providing a sense of comfort and belonging for children who are experiencing a less stable environment. I’m looking forward to the next volunteer opportunity Upbring provides.”
Each backpack was carefully packed with an assortment of supplies including notebooks, pencils, markers, and motivational stickers and a personalized card signed by every volunteer. Your generosity extended even further—surplus supplies were donated to children at our Upbring Head Start Preschool, ensuring even more young learners could benefit from your kindness.
Brittany Kegley, Director of Donor Relations for Upbring’s Community Engagement team, put it best: “Providing school supplies to children in foster care and the families of Head Start is deeper than a kind gesture—it’s a bridge to opportunity, offering them the tools to succeed alongside their classmates. Furthermore, it provides help to these wonderful foster parents striving to make a difference in the child’s life.”
Because of you, these children are starting their academic journey with confidence, excitement and the chance to thrive. Your generosity fuels our mission to break the cycle of child abuse by empowering children, families and communities.
Thank you for making a difference. Want to do more? Learn about Foster In Texas at Upbring.org/FosterInTexas. For information on becoming an Upbring partner, please visit Upbring.org/Get-Involved.