Looking back
The organization started 25 years ago when volunteers realized there was a lack of funding available to cover children's basic needs.
“Some women that were volunteering at Child Protective Services realized that the caseworkers were having to spend their own money to buy items for kiddos whenever they were going in and taking them out of traumatic situations,” Development and Events Coordinator Lauren Whidden said.
Whidden said children needed diapers, car seats and other basic necessities. The women volunteering for CPS decided to take matters into their own hands and started an organization that would provide the basic needs of children in CPS with only $5,000.
Texas has about 16,000 children in CPS at any given time, she said.
“I want people to realize that Child Protective Services come to your child's school, no matter what area you live in, and you think that it doesn't touch you but it does,” she said.
Recognizing the need for services for children recently uprooted from their homes, BEAR has since expanded its services with the help of Harris County Resources for Children and Adults, and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services.
About the program
Today, BEAR provides its services to CPS-involved children in Houston as well as any child who is referred as a child in need. Services are partially funded through the private and public partnership the organization has with Harris County Resources for Children and Adults and the Texas DFPS.
This collaboration allows $0.85 of every dollar earned through fundraising efforts to go back to effectively operating BEAR’s four core programs:
- BEAR Necessities: Provides CPS-involved children with basic needs, such as toothpaste, deodorant, hygiene products, shampoo, clothing, shoes, diapers, car seats and air mattresses
- BEAR Back to School: Provides back to school essentials including backpacks and school supplies
- BEARing Gifts: Provides brand-new holiday gifts to at-risk and CPS-involved children who may otherwise not experience the joy of the holiday season
- Heart Gallery of Greater Houston: A photographic exhibit created to help children in foster care find forever families
“Our biggest supporters are those everyday families. Everything donated adds up, and people don't realize that every little bit makes a really big difference. We're not a nonprofit that's getting millions of dollars donated to us or anything like that. Our support comes from our everyday peers that are helping us,” Whidden said.
Community members interested in contributing to BEAR can do so through volunteering, donations, sponsorship and by raising awareness.
