Camp Fire backs the CALL with donation fundraiser parade
May is Foster Care Awareness Month, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the CALL of Union County, a branch of the statewide nonprofit that helps to match Christian families with foster children, has had to cancel several events that are typically scheduled in May, which could hurt both fundraising and raising awareness.
Karen Hicks, director of the local CALL branch, said that while she has not seen a decrease in the organization’s monthly support yet, it’s hard to know how those numbers will shake out come next quarter. She said supply donations have seen a downturn, since many organizations that support the CALL, like churches and social groups, are not currently meeting.
“Without the multiple events we normally host to raise awareness, this was a welcome opportunity,” she said in an email correspondence. “We want the community to know that we are still operating and that foster families are still wide open to caring for the kids they serve!”
That’s where Camp Fire El Dorado stepped in. Camp Fire Club 20, made
up of high school sophomores, looking for a way to continue community service through the pandemic, recently had the idea to host a socially distanced donation parade for the CALL.
“With the craziness of COVID-19, the CALL wasn’t able to hold some of their fundraisers, so this is a great way Camp Fire can help them. We’ve been doing things for and with the CALL for years, starting with a 5K hosted by Club 24 in 2016,” Leanne Harrell, executive director of Camp Fire El Dorado, said in an email. “All 59 of our clubs have been encouraged to participate. This is our council-wide service project for the month.”
This afternoon, Camp Fire’s parade will make its way from the South Arkansas Arts Center parking lot down Fifth Street to the CALL Support Center at the corner of Fifth and Euclid, where participants can pass off supply and monetary donations to Hicks and Harrell.
The parade will begin at 5 p.m.; before that, cars should wait in the SAAC parking lot. If the SAAC parking lot is full, other participants can park at the TAC House at North West and Fifth. Those who participate are asked to continue driving after making their donations so that traffic flow remains steady; they may turn left or right onto Euclid or continue on Fifth Street. The El Dorado Police Department will help with traffic flow, Harrell said.
“Anyone and everyone is encouraged to participate,” she said. “I’m excited to see our Camp Fire members. We are encouraging everyone to stay in their cars and practice social distancing. It will be nice to see everyone’s smiling faces in person!”
The CALL Support Center is where the CALL Mall is located; the CALL Mall is where the organization stores supplies to distribute to the foster families they support. Hicks said the CALL is currently in need of diapers and wipes, as always; and they could also use art supplies, gift cards for Walmart or restaurants, games, service gift cards for things like lawn mowing and car washing, soap, hand sanitizer, disinfectant wipes, trash bags, toilet paper, outdoor games, deodorant, shampoo, African-American hair care products, diaper cream, feminine hygiene products and summer gear.
There are currently 58 foster children in Union County. Hicks said the number of foster children in the state increased as the COVID-19 pandemic hit. She encouraged Union County residents to get involved with the CALL, which is continuing to recruit and train foster families and support them after they answer the call.
“We need more foster families. We need people to step up and offer love and support to the existing foster families,” Hicks said. “Our families are on the front line doing the best they can. But, even they know, it’s not enough. We are seeing the foster families face this situations head on and they are meeting the need.”