Michael Kraft
At any one time, there are 200+ children and youth in Resource Family or Foster Family care in Humboldt County. The Humboldt Foster Care Resource Center exists to support that community by providing clothing and things like baby equipment and toys. They provide these items free of charge to all children in care, and to reuniting families and permanent placements. They also serve as a resource center to guide resource/foster families, share resources, and make referrals.
The center has existed since 2015, when it was founded in a church closet. It has been housed in various locations since then. In 2022, a group of foster parents and supportive community members began meeting and decided to seek nonprofit status, which they secured in early 2024.
I spoke with Debbie Parks, President, and Trevlene Blood, another board member.
I learned that over half the kids in care in Humboldt get placed with a family member or family friend. This has the benefit of the child not being placed with strangers but adds some complication as these people are generally not veterans of the foster system and therefore are not typically as well prepared for what is involved.
Families seeking clothing and other items are able to access the center. Open hours at the 1st Methodist Church at 520 Del Norte St. in Eureka are on Saturdays from 10 – 2. They can also make an appointment by calling the Center at 707-243-3272.
The organization partners with people at the 1st Presbyterian Church, who provide frozen casseroles. (New placements receive a free meal, and it’s also a way to reach out, introduce the Center’s services and provide care.) The Linus Foundation and Christ Episcopal Church make blankets. “We try to partner with as many organizations as we can,” Debbie said.
When I asked Debbie and Trevlene what they most want people to know, the answer was this: “we exist and we’re here to serve the foster community.” They explained that while they actively network with social service agencies, they aren’t as well known in the wider community as they’d like.
The Center is entirely community-supported. I asked how we in the wider community could help. The good news and bad news is that it’s a long list:
- Donations of clothing. Most needed: any new or gently used clothing items birth – teen. “Anything a teen would wear,” Debbie said. (This would disqualify my now-too-big striped polo shirts.)
- New or gently used toys, strollers, pack-and-plays, and cribs (although, as explained below, storage space is an issue).
- New items are necessary in some cases, such as underwear, socks, pacifiers, and most shoes. Or gift cards to local merchants that the organization can give to resource families to pay for these things.
- Donations of dollars (visit https://givebutter.com/HumboldtFosterCare or you can send checks sent to the address). The center relies on financial support to help with things like rent, insurance, and tech expenses.
- Community partners, including those who want to conduct clothing drives or similar. The Resource Center can help identify needs. “A diaper drive was really helpful.”
- Storage space for larger items like beds and dressers.
- Board members and volunteers. “We hope in 2026 to expand hours,” Debbie said, and new volunteers would help staffing the Center and, ideally, that larger storage space. There will be board elections in February, so now is a particularly good time to nominate yourself to serve on the board.
To amplify some on storage, as more people who are friends and families serve in resource/foster care, it causes a need for furniture—beds, dressers, etc.— on short notice. These placements can happen literally overnight and often the family doesn’t have the extra furniture the new household member requires. “We work with other providers, but we need more space to be able to quickly provide bigger furniture.” This need also exists for reuniting families who have found housing after being houseless.
You can tell how committed Trevlene, Debbie and their colleagues are to providing good, quick, relevant items that meet the needs of kids in resource/foster care. Debbie told the story of a girl, a larger than average kindergartener, who didn’t have enough clothing and nothing in the organization’s closet would fit her. “It just broke my heart when I wasn’t able to provide something that fit this kindergarten girl.”
With our help, the Humboldt Foster Care Resource Center can continue and enhance their important services. To connect, visit https://www.humboldtfcrc.org/. You can also follow the Center on Facebook.
Michael Kraft writes the Good Work series, volunteering on behalf of the Northern California Association of Nonprofits (NorCAN). NorCAN supports connections between people and organizations that work every day to keep our communities healthy and strong by offering professional development, board support, networking connections and more. Learn more at https://norcal-nonprofits.org/. To nominate a deserving nonprofit organization to be profiled, email michael@kraftconsultants.com.
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