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National Family
Week is November 18-24, 2007. This both thrills me and saddens me. I
am very pleased that as a nation we have set a time aside to
specifically celebrate the incredible gift of family. I am saddened
that this is not celebrated at all by millions of our children in
America. More specifically, there are hundreds of children and
families receiving our services today that are not blessed by a
healthy and complete family.
However, I am
thrilled that Y'vonne, Jose, Billy, and Jennifer will all be having
a “family Thanksgiving” at TLC. This would not be possible without
the heartfelt commitment of our staff and the generosity of you, our
supporters. We hope that you are able to appreciate your family
during this month and that you will celebrate your family, and the
great opportunities this life has provided for all of us.
With great
thanksgiving,
Bob Drummond,
Ed.D
President and
CEO
Changing Lives...
National Family Week
Celebrated for more than 30 years, National Family Week is
held the week of Thanksgiving. It provides everyone opportunities to
honor the connections that support and strengthen families,
connections both within families and from families to their
communities. That's why the theme is Connections Count.
National
Family Week: Connections Count embraces the premise that
children live better lives when their families are strong, and
families are strong when they live in communities that connect them
to economic opportunities, social networks, and services. These
“connections,” include: economic self-sufficiency, dependable
transportation, reliable child care, accessible health care,
applicable education and training, and affordable
housing.
TLC for
Children and Families is working with local venues in Olathe to plan
special privileges for the foster families at TLC during National
Family Week. Culvers, Mission Bowl n' Olathe, Chick-fil-A, and Old
Chicago are all providing free food and activities to families in
the local area that are providing foster care to children through
TLC.
The
following are ways to celebrate National Family Week:
• Get
involved in local National Family Week activities.
•
Celebrate the connections you have with your family and community.
•
Encourage employers to consider family-friendly work options such as
flexible hours and time off to attend school functions.
• Select
an issue that can improve your community. Work with local officials
to effect change.
• Meet and
get to know your neighbors.
•
Volunteer with a nonprofit organization on projects that benefit
your community.
For more
information visit http://nationalfamilyweek.org/
or call Hillary West, Director of Resource Development for TLC at
913-764-2887.
SHINING STARS...
Recognizing Special
Volunteers
TLC
would like to recognize a very special volunteer that has made, and
continues to make a tremendous impact in the lives of the youth in
our PRTF residential homes. Alan Banwart spends most Thursday nights
here at TLC interacting with our youth and participating in
activities with the staff. Alan is a valuable asset to TLC and the
kids we serve. The staff at TLC greatly appreciates the time and
effort that Alan puts into each visit.
One
staff said “Alan communicates so well with the kids, he always asks
for their input when doing an activity and allows them to decide
what they want to do together.”
Alan plays basketball and board games, sits down with the
kids at dinner and helps them with their chores. Alan's lessons of
patience, understanding and friendship will stay with each of the
youth who are able interact with him.
Thank you Alan for giving so many kids hope!
Fall Event for TLC Resource
Families...
TLC's
Resource Family Services staff and resource families met at Olathe
East Lanes on Saturday, October 20th for their fall event. Fourteen
resource parents and 33 children enjoyed bowling, face painting,
frozen custard, cupcakes and conversation.
A
special thank you to "The Sister Act Face Painting" (Mj Matthew and
Kim Nichols) http://www.sisteractfacepainting.com/for
donating face painting for the kids and to Culver's of Olathe for
providing frozen custard.
Julie
Lane, TLC resource parent, sent some delicious yellow cupcakes with
the letters "TLC" on them. The three bowlers with the top score
received medals and all of the children received "goodie bags" from
the TLC staff. The door prize was a five disc CD player won by Tyler
and Tammy Adams, TLC resource parents.
The
staff, kids and resource parents had a great time thanks to all who
participated!
Face Paiting and
Fun!
Special Event Spotlights...
TLC Holiday Cards
For the
13th year, TLC will be offering unique greeting cards for the
holiday season. This is an excellent opportunity to support TLC
while also sharing the joys of the holiday season with your family,
friends, clients, customers and other business associates.
This year's
Union Station painting is entitled Holiday Station,
donated by local artist Gil Rumsey. This year, we are
also offering for the first time, a youth designed
Thanksgiving card. Finally, you may also purchase a
variety pack containing 5 of this year's
Union Station scene and a variety of previous years' cards.
The
cards are sold in packages of 25 cards for a
minimum contribution of $25.00 per package. The cards come with a
standard inside sentiment but it can be changed or personalized with
your information (including your logo, different colors, electronic
signatures, etc.) for an additional amount.
Orders
can be placed by calling Hillary West at the TLC office at
913-764-2887, by email at hwest@kidstlc.org or by visiting
TLC's holiday card artist, Gil Rumsey's Gallery located at 8201
Santa Fe Drive in Overland Park . To view a complete selection of
holiday cards or to place your order on line, visit our
website. We are grateful for the generosity of artist Gil
Rumsey, TradeNet Publishing, and Xpedx!
United
for Kids Gala makes wishes come true...
It just keeps
getter bigger and better! Gala Coordinator Linda Rumsey, assisted by
Director of Development, Hillary West, led their dynamic committee
of 36 volunteers in raising $280,000 for TLC! And
in the process, they created another magical evening for TLC
supporters. The Sheraton Hotel was the site for TLC's biggest and
brightest birthday party ever! Over 625 guests were present to blow
out the candles and wish TLC many more years of “caring and making
wishes come true”. Special thanks to Tom and Donna Mertz, Gala
Honorary Chairs as well as Fred and Lou Hartwig, Champion of
Children sponsors.
K.C. Live
Co-hosts Brett Anthony and Meredith Hoenes served as emcees,
introducing the program and a touching video. They were followed by
Dustin Colquitt, Kansas City Chiefs Punter and TLC Spokesperson. He
was joined on stage by TLC foster and adoptive parents and their
families. On behalf of TLC's kids, Dustin presented a challenge to
“Fund the Need” at TLC so that all kids might find a home—and some
hope. Generous guests pledged $41,000—all in under ten
minutes! There was a fabulous silent and live auction as well
as dinner and entertainment by The McFadden Brothers.
Thank
you to everyone who attended
and
supported this year's Gala!
Tom and Donna Mertz, Gala Honorary Chairs
Meredith
and Brett, our Emcees!
with Fred and Lou
Hartwig, Champions of
Children
Bobby
and Laura
Hennessey, Friends
of Children award recipients
Honda
of Tiffany Springs
Terry
and Mayor Peggy Dunn
Rob and Crystal Boyer
with Kansas City
Chiefs
The
McFadden Brothers!
Chiefs players Dustin Colquitt (TLC
spokesperson)
and Jared
Allen
Power with A Purpose Event
supports TLC...
The Second
Annual Power With A Purpose Friend-Raiser for TLC was held
on Columbus Day, October 8. Two hundred guests enjoyed a memorable
evening in the company of community-minded women. Lyn Shaw and
Dennis Langley were ideal hosts and their home, “The Spirit of
Avalon”, was a picture-perfect venue for the gathering! Guests
enjoyed both the unique features of the home and the magnificence of
the grounds. A delicious variety of food was prepared on site and
served by Carrabba's staff—all complimentary of Carrabba's
Italian Grill, 10586 Metcalf.
Thanks to our
guests, sponsors and other supporters, we raised over
$21,000 at our “Friend-raiser” ! The proceeds from this
year's PWAP event are dedicated to developing a new on-site
medical and dental program for youth and teens living at TLC. Thanks
to the generosity of individuals and our sponsors, TLC's youth—some
of them for the first time in their lives—will receive timely and
compassionate medical care and be introduced to basic dental
services.
Carrabba's
representatives
Hosts Lyn Shaw and Dennis Langley
Mike Schaefer and Debbie
Parolise
 
Event Leadership
Team and Guest
Bartenders
Steering Committee members in attendance
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