The holiday season brings with it a heightened urgency for children and teens in the foster care and child welfare systems who are seeking a forever home. Wednesday’s Child works year-round to support these kids, foster parents, and adoptive families, aiming to connect all children in Louisville and across the Commonwealth to a loving home.
The genesis of Wednesday’s Child is rooted in WLKY’s weekly news segments beginning in 1980, with iconic former news anchor and current Wednesday’s Child Chairperson Emeritus Liz Everman presenting profiles of older children still awaiting adoption. The outpouring of compassion and concern from viewers led to the formation of Wednesday’s Child, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization that can accept donations that the news station cannot. Wednesday’s Child is grateful for the public awareness and exposure that is so important for older foster children to find their forever homes. Freelance Reporter and Wednesday’s Child Spokesperson Christina Dettman has carried the torch for the cause on WLKY since 2013.
On November 6, Wednesday’s Child presented its Shining Star Award to The Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels®, who make the Wednesday’s Child Family Fun Day possible. According to Wednesday’s Child Executive Director Dana Carroll, Family Fun Day at Kentucky Kingdom is an opportunity for foster families who have adopted children to celebrate.
“Family Fun Day is a happy time for all involved,” says Carroll. “These adoptive families meet and celebrate each other for reaching our end goal of foster children being adopted, especially older children, who are an often forgotten population in the system. Children who don’t usually share at school can relate to other kids who may have been in similar situations, which sadly often have involved abuse and neglect.”
To supplement foster parents’ stipends for basic needs, Wednesday’s Child maintains an ongoing Wish List Fund that goes above and beyond to provide for extracurricular activities so that foster children can participate like other kids. Jeff Culver of the Department for Community-Based Services in the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services says, “Wednesday’s Child has long recognized that there is a need for foster children to participate in extracurricular activities, hobbies, and educational opportunities. We recognize that if a foster child desires a childhood experience that other children seek but can’t due to financial reasons, we want to eliminate that barrier. We will continue to work with DCBS to determine that the requests are well-intentioned and for the sole benefit of the foster child.”
Working with state government agencies, private businesses, and other charitable organizations is vital to Wednesday’s Child’s success. Dana Carroll explains, on November 2, Wednesday’s Child teamed up with St. Joseph Children’s Home for their first-ever Explore Foster Care & Adoption Conference. “We’re so happy their CEO Grace Akers was open to the idea,” says Carroll.
Individual donations remain critical to the Wish List Fund and other programs supporting foster children. Former Wednesday’s Child and UofL graduate Cynthia Schepers emphasizes this point. “When Wednesday’s Child first connected to me when I was a teen to help me find a family – that had a lasting impact on the way I see myself and my life. I used to believe that I needed to become someone who was adoptable, but Wednesday’s Child taught me that I could be my own person and have my own wants and needs of a family. It has been a message I have carried with me to this day, twelve-plus years later. I wouldn’t be the confident advocate I am today without this organization. The impact of your donation has unlimited potential.”
Visit wednesdayschild.com/donate-now or text “adoptky” to 44321 to receive this link to make your donation. For more information, follow Wednesday’s Child @WednesdaysChildWLKY on Facebook and @wednesdayschildinc on Instagram or email Dana Carroll at wlkywednesdayschild@gmail.com.
