Wish list for girls: clothing, toy chest

Caring

lies and helps hundreds of others through local nonprofit agencies.

Each year, each Star Furniture store adopts a local family, and this year, the local Star store chose to work with Season for Caring. In addition to the furniture, Star employees have been donating Christmas gifts, small appliances and clothes for the family.

While Star is working on procuring all its gifts for Rodriguez, another family also has offered to provide some additional furniture in January after their own new furniture is delivered.

Most of the gifts will be stored by Austin Children’s Shelter until Rodriguez can get her own apartment. She took her first steps toward that on Thursday by graduating from the certified nursing assistant program at Texas Covenant Education. She is hopeful her new certification will help her get a good job soon and she can save up to afford an apartment. Eventually, she’d like to further her education.

“She’s a great mom,” said Julie Burch, director of marketing and public relations at the Austin Children’s Shelter. “This is going to give her a great start.”

Rodriguez still needs help with living expenses for a new apartment including a deposit, rent for a year and utilities. She needs a job in the medical field to use her new certification, gift cards for groceries, clothing, a filing cabinet, a TV, a printer, dishes and booster seats. She also would like clothing, a toy chest, a play kitchen and Disney DVDs for the girls, and for herself, she’d like a gift certificate for a salon.

To find out more about Rodriguez or to give something on her wish list, contact the Austin Children’s Shelter at 6965327 or austinchildrenshelter.org.