From Foster Moms to Community Resource | Downriver Foster Closet

Charity and Kim, both foster moms, saw the many needs foster families run into and decided to do something about it. Without prior experience, they dove into the world of non-profits. If you’ve ever considered starting your own non-profit, this is the episode to listen to! 

What You’ll Hear:

• Tips for someone wanting to start a non-profit
• Lessons learned that can save you time
• Encouragement to start where you are
• And more!

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Credits

Editing: Greg Herman

Music: “Corporate Inspiration” track - by Oleksandr Savochka at Pixabay

Transcript

Speaker 2 0:00

It's so exciting. Um, I mean, I've had kids get excited about gently used Nike shoes. Why? Because it's Nike and they've never owned a name brand item.

Speaker 1 0:12

Hi everyone, and welcome to Highlight Her. I'm Jenny, and each week I sit down with women entrepreneurs to talk about their stories, the inspiration behind what they're building, and the next steps in their journey. Consider yourself sitting in the third chair at our virtual table. Once a season, I like to be sure to feature a nonprofit and help them get some visibility and also so we can learn how to help and start our own nonprofits if we want to. Today I'm joined by Charity and Kim. They are the powerhouse foster moms behind Downriver Foster Closet. I haven't actually met them in person before, but I've dropped things off at their food pantry and their pet pantry. And I'm excited to learn more about them because I see a lot of community interaction with their nonprofit. So welcome, Kim and Charity. Thank you so much for joining us today.

Speaker 2 1:08

Thank you. Thank you for having us.

Speaker 1 1:10

You're very welcome. I'm really excited. I think you guys are doing great things. I can't wait to learn more and also help you get the word out. So before I get started, I'm gonna ask you each for a response to this one question. So we'll start with charity. We'll just go alphabetically and make it easy. What is a moment that you've had where you thought this is why I do this? So, charity, do you have an answer for that?

Speaker 2 1:34

Yeah, so we do monthly outings for the kids that we care for. Um, we do Easter basket giveaways or Disney on ice or tomorrow we're actually going to a Tigers game. And when I'm at these events or I see these kids and see the response that they have to the event that we're putting on or to the show that we're taking them to, it's almost like a kid walking into Disneyland or a kid on Christmas. Their eyes just light up and they are so excited and so happy. Um, we've come to know a lot of these kids. So when they come to the event, it's something that they're looking forward to. They come running up to us, hi, Miss Charity, give us a big hug. Um, and then when you have a kid that comes up to you and tell you that something as simple as like a back to school event where we've given away backpacks and we had the firemen there. Um, and they come up to us and tell us it's the best day that they've had and they're 14 years old. Um, those are the days that keep me moving forward.

Speaker 1 2:38

I love that. How about you, Kim?

Speaker 2:40

I would say pretty much the same thing. Um, and I kind of when I tell this story, when we first opened, we were in a storage unit um that was our first building. And we had a stepdad that came there and he brought in, I don't know, three or four boys. And I laid out the suitcases for them and told them they could take whatever they wanted. And the little boy was, he's he's like, Can I take these Nike shirts? I'm like, you have to fill your suitcases full, you know? And um, he was all excited. And I went in and got him some hygiene stuff, and um I gave him a little trial bit thing of um Axe, and he started crying and he hugged me. And that was like one of the that was probably the the first time, but I mean, like again, charity always says, you know, it's just seeing the kids running and having fun, and they come up and they say thank you, and the parents thank us, and that's what keeps us going.

Speaker 1 3:38

For the listeners, this is a service provided in Wayne County in southeast Michigan. Do you service the whole county or a specific area?

Speaker 3:48

All of Michigan.

Speaker 1 3:50

Oh, okay. And how did you guys meet?

Speaker 3:53

So um, Charity, I'm old enough to be Charity's mom. I've kind of just adopted her, but I had a little boy in care probably about seven, eight years ago, and I had hurt my shoulder and I had asked to had to ask for placement for him. And I went over my daughter's that night. I have grown kids, and she's like, Where is this little boy? And I said, He actually went to another foster home. I couldn't lift him. And she said, Mom, hold on a second. She said, My friend Charity is a foster mom too. And I think she's with orchards. And she just posted that they took placement. And I was like, No way. I said, Message her. So she messaged her. And Charity was like, Yeah, I have them. And that's one thing when, you know, not every child works. And when a child has to be moved for whatever reason it is, you always wonder where that child's at, if they're being loved, if they're being taken care of. And from that moment on, we exchanged phone numbers and we talked every day for a couple of years on what we wanted to do and how we're gonna do it and where we were gonna do it. It's it's kind of crazy where where we're at. But um, yeah, that's how we met.

Speaker 1 5:08

So what was your first downriver foster closet event like for you guys?

Speaker 2 5:14

Uh so we did a bike drive at uh at the time it was a house that uh volunteer had given us. Um, and we were so excited. We had like 30, I think it was 36 bikes total, um, and some like summer stuff. And it was really small, but it was right during COVID. So it was outside. Um, and it was it was a blast. The kids had fun. Um, but to where we started and where we are now, it's just unbelievable. We went from servicing 36 kids at that bike drive. Now our bike drive is over 200 kids.

Speaker 1 5:50

Wow. Yeah, that's amazing in six years.

Speaker 2 5:54

Uh, we have been, yeah, yep, six years. We've been open six years now.

Speaker 1 5:58

That's great. And Kim mentioned that you guys started in a storage closet. Did you next move to the building you're in now, or have you had a couple in between?

Speaker 2 6:08

No, we have we've had some in between. We started off in the storage unit. We moved into a house um that a volunteer had donated to us, and then we outgrew that, and now we're in a 5,000 square foot commercial building and why not. Um, and sadly, um, we've outgrown that as well. Um, so our next step uh we'll actually be launching next month is our Forever Home campaign. Um, we want to make sure that the Downriver Foster Closet stays and is something for the community well after we're gone. Um, so we're hoping to raise funds and purchase a building that will be ours that we can add to and also grow as needed.

Speaker 1 6:49

Wow. And this podcast will actually go live in May. So it sounds like it will be about the time that you're launching that.

Speaker 2 6:56

Yeah, May is actually foster care awareness month. That's why we chose to do it in May.

Speaker 1 7:01

Oh, even better. Well, how exciting! I love it when pieces fall together like that. Had either of you done nonprofit work work before?

Speaker 2 7:10

No.

Speaker 1 7:11

What kind of learning curve did you have?

Speaker 2 7:13

Oh my gosh, every day is a learning curve. It's still a learning curve. Um, we thought we started off as something as simple. We thought it was gonna be like uh this cute boutique, and I don't think we even realized what kind of need there was for a closet in the downriver area. So when we first started, we were like, oh yeah, it's gonna be this cute little boutique and small, and we'll have little section rooms, and now it's this large um operation where we have clothing, hygiene. We've opened a um pantry on the outside of our building um for food and for pet. Um, there's just such a need, not just in the foster care world, but the downriver community as a whole, that we just keep growing and growing and growing. Um, but yeah, it's definitely been a learning curve with just starting from the beginning to get our 501c3 to um, you know, buildings and what we need to get loans and grant. Um, so we're constantly learning.

Speaker 1 8:19

I imagine that you're not the same people that started this journey. Kim, how have you changed?

Speaker 8:24

I have two grown kids. They're 35 and 33, and then we've had mulitple foster kids and we've adopted five. So my husband works all day. So I'm home with the kids, and then at night I get over there when I can and go through donations, clean whatever. Um, charity, she's got seven kids. She's the general manager at the Grecian Center. So I don't know how she does all, she does the computer stuff, and I don't know how she does it all, but she'll be working on one thing and working on something else and taking phone calls. It's really made you realize just how much need there is. I mean, it's just, it's very sad. You know, we we hear a lot of the stories that, you know, people think foster care, oh, you just take these kids in, you feed them, you dress them. There's so much more. There's so much, you know, you got visits and court cases and, you know, drama that these kids have been through, and you got to learn how to deal with it. Every child that has, you know, whether it's ADHD or my my little son that's four, he has cerebral palsy. And so, you know, just researching and learning and trying to be able to give that advice to other people, because I don't know what it is, and I'm sure charity will agree, but people always think that me and charity are DHS. Like they always come to us for questions. And it's like, you know, we don't make the decisions, we don't make the rules, you know. So, but it's um, it really teaches you a lot, I'll tell you. You've got to have a lot of patience.

Speaker 1 10:03

Charity, how would you say you've changed since this journey has started?

Speaker 2 10:07

I've definitely grown as a person um and as a mom, and definitely it really opened my eyes to community awareness. And I do have seven kids, and you really need a village to raise these kids. So I fall back on Kim for a lot of things. Um, I've been very lucky to make a lot of bonds with other nonprofit leaders and members of the community and foster parents that have really helped grow the nonprofit. Um, and have also helped in like personal life and help with the kids and really make it possible for us to get to where we are. Um, so that's I think really um helped me kind of let my walls down and um allow people to help too, because I'm the type of person that I want to do everything on my own. But when you're running a bunch of different um directions, you need help. Um, that's actually where we've leaned. We have a really good volunteer crew right now um that we couldn't do this without them. And it took like learning to let go of you know, managing certain things, um, to allow other people to kind of take over that area. So I think that is a big place that I've grown um is learning to allow other people in to help with making this a bigger possibility for others.

Speaker 1 11:46

I can imagine it could be overwhelming sometimes. You've mentioned what a great need there is in the community, not only for foster families, but in general. Do you ever feel overwhelmed, either of you?

Speaker 2 11:59

Yes, on a daily.

Speaker 12:01

It's a lot. I mean, charity deals with it more than I do. Like she's in and out during the day. And when she, you know, I live way down in Brownstown. Um, so when I get up that way, if I'm out out like today, I was out and I stopped in, and but it it's sometimes you just walk in there and you feel very overwhelmed. I mean, I went over there at night before and I walk in and there might be, you know, 50 bags of donations, and it's like, oh my gosh, you know, yeah, it's it's a lot. It's a lot.

Speaker 1 12:36

What do you guys do to work through that overwhelm?

Speaker 2 12:39

Well, I think a big part of um me learning to deal with the overwhelming part of it is knowing that not everything has to be done right then and there, right? Like there's always the next day. Um, so sometimes walking away from the closet and going to do something else is very helpful. And you know, just even as a parent, like sometimes you just have to walk out of the house and take a deep breath, you know what I mean. So I think the closet has helped teach me um to focus on that as well and realizing that not everything can be controlled, and um, you got to do the best that you can do, and the cards will fall the right way.

Speaker 1 13:22

So are you open every day?

Speaker 2 13:24

We are now. So we are that was one of our big goals was we wanted to be open seven days a week. Um, and we just started the month of April. We are now officially open seven days a week. So we have enough volunteers that are trained to run the day-to-day at the building. Um, so we are currently open Monday through Sunday. So we have limited hours. Um, but that's for our families to come and shop, and that's for donations as well and volunteering.

Speaker 1 13:55

Congratulations.

Speaker 2 13:57

Thank you.

Speaker 1 13:58

So walk us through what happens when a family contacts you and says, I am getting some foster kids. How can you help me?

Speaker 2 14:08

So they show up at the closet, they have to bring in their licensing paperwork, um, and they'll be greeted by one of our volunteers. They'll fill out some paperwork just to kind of check them into the system, provide their documentation that we require. And then we have one of the volunteers or somebody else that's there that helps shop with them. Now we've been super blessed by the Downriver community with the amount of donations. So luckily, we have not put a very firm limit on uh gently used items, um, but we do have a limit on new items. So each kid has a separate side, so the closet's split up between boys and girls. So they're able to go through with their volunteer shopper, get the clothing that they need. We keep um hygiene products in there, we keep school supplies all year round. Um, if it's a new placement, they're able to get a couple toys out of our toy room, and then um socks, underwear, and then we have baby equipment and furniture as well, and books. We have lots of books. Nice, very big library.

Speaker 1 15:13

And what's your favorite thing about watching a family go through?

Speaker 2 15:16

So it's not necessarily the family I like watching, it's the kids, the kids. So, yeah, a lot of these kids come from a situation where they don't really have a whole lot of their own, or they don't have stuff that fits them, or they've never received a new item. It was always gently used items or hand-me-downs. So watching them go through the whole building and realizing that they can take whatever they want and it's all free and it's all theirs, it's so exciting. Um, I mean, I've had kids get excited about gently used Nike shoes. Why? Because it's Nike and they've never owned a name brand item. So they got super excited over something that we might take for granted. So it's definitely opened my eyes to be um to really appreciate the things that we have and that we're given because something as simple as like Kim said earlier, an axe body gift set makes a kid's whole world.

Speaker 1 16:23

Do you have any downriver businesses that donate items that they can't use?

Speaker 16:28

We work with like if we're donated stuff like from like Walmart or Amazon or Sam's Club and stuff, and we're not we have too much of it or we want to donate. We've donated to downriver veterans before. We've donated to Mimi's mission. Um, we had a bunch of headphones and we donated a bunch of those to her. So we all like kind of work together. And if you know we need something or whatever, there's organizations that will jump out and help us and vice versa. And it it works really nice to build that relationship with them.

Speaker 1 17:06

I love that teamwork. So there are, for example, let's say that maybe a local business has has a surplus of something, they might call you and say, hey, we can't use this.

Speaker 17:18

Yeah.

Speaker 1 17:19

Would you like some, would you like some notebooks or would you like some extra clothes, that kind of thing?

Speaker 17:24

Yeah, it's we will, you know, definitely. We work a lot with Macomb Foster Closet. Um, and they they do the same for us. Like if we have an overabundance of stuff and you know, it's really not being pushed, um, we'll donate to other closets or other organizations, whether it's women's shelters or veterans or you know, to help them out too.

Speaker 2 17:46

So yeah, our volunteers keep us organized. So I mean the closet itself is pretty much laid out, pretty um organized, pretty much the whole thing. So we label everything in the area um of the actual closet of where everything goes. So just sorting through and the volunteers putting things where they need to be is really what keeps us organized.

Speaker 1 18:08

And what about your time, like keeping track of all the tasks that you have to do or the events, the pieces of each event that you have to put together? Do you have a system?

Speaker 2 18:17

Yes. So we do do um a yearly calendar. So we try to do everything a year in advance so that way it helps us with scheduling. Um, it does help that I have a background of event planning, so that kind of helps with like the organization part of it, but we do keep everything like locked down in calendars and on our Google Drive that allows us to um keep everything organized. I love that.

Speaker 1 18:45

So I'm really curious if someone wanted to volunteer with you, what is the procedure for them?

Speaker 2 18:52

Um, so for volunteering, how they can volunteer um is stopping in. You can always start there. We don't have like sign-up sheets for volunteering. If you want to just get your feet wet and kind of see what we're all about, stop in the building, ask for a tour. Um, our volunteers would love to show you around. And then we do have a volunteer application that you can fill out on our website at Donriverfosforcloset.org. And it basically will link you into our emails. So we'll send an email out monthly to all of our volunteers with our newsletter for up incoming events, and it also has our um next month's hours on there because we are closed for holidays and depending on what events are going on will determine um our hours as well. So sometimes our hours will change, so you can always link up that way as well, or just stopping it during our open hours and volunteering.

Speaker 1 19:54

How many volunteers do you need to keep the closet open seven days a week?

Speaker 2 19:59

So, right now we are running with a total of 10 um main volunteers. Yes, I know everyone looks at me and they make that face like what 10? Yeah, we are a very small organization. We only have about there's about maybe 18 of us in total that um run the whole shebang. Um, but we're small but mighty.

Speaker 1 20:23

Some dedicated volunteers that you can do seven days a week on 10 people.

Speaker 2 20:27

Yes, yep. So we have right now, currently we have two volunteers um that are attached to each day. Um, and a couple of them do multiple days. I do some days, so that allows us to stay open seven days, and then we communicate and work, you know. Obviously, if family things come up, other obligations come up where we switch shifts. So yeah, 10 main ones.

Speaker 1 20:51

What would you say is your biggest event during the year?

Speaker 20:55

Christmas. The bike drive is usually really big. I mean, all of our events are amazing, uh, but I would say Christmas, that's uh it's the best.

Speaker 2 21:05

2025, we brought in about 350 uh families.

Speaker 1 21:10

That's fabulous. Thank you so much for listening to this episode. I'm stopping by with a special invitation. Can you believe that season one is almost complete? I'm so excited and I'm truly grateful for your support. I want to do a special QA episode at the end of season one. But in order to do that, I need questions to answer. Can you let me know what questions you have? Use the fan mail button at the top of the show notes to send me your questions. I can't wait to create this special episode for you. All right, so I've got a lightning round of questions, just a couple fun questions to end the episode, and I'll give you each a chance to give your answer. So, Kim, coffee, tea, or hot chocolate?

Speaker 2 21:59

Coffee.

Speaker 1 22:00

All right. And Charity, how about you?

Speaker 2 22:01

Coffee all day. Tim Horns, too.

Speaker 1 22:04

That is the winning answer. Everyone has said coffee so far. All right. For both of you. Um, Kim, are you early bird or night owl?

Speaker 2 22:12

Night owl.

Speaker 1 22:13

And charity?

Speaker 2 22:14

Night owl.

Speaker 1 22:15

Charity, what would you say is the best tool or app that you use to run your nonprofit?

Speaker 2 22:21

Would probably be our Google Calendar.

Speaker 1 22:24

All right. And Kim?

Speaker 2 22:25

Probably the Google Calendar.

Speaker 1 22:27

And what is your favorite way to unwind after a busy workday charity?

Speaker 2 22:32

Something signed by my husband.

Speaker 1 22:35

Love that answer. Kim. I call charity. I love that. Do you guys have another female-founded nonprofit that you'd like to highlight?

Speaker 22:45

Probably Lisa with Mimi's Mission.

Speaker 1 22:48

How about you, Charity?

Speaker 2 22:49

Raina. It's called Region Hall in Need of Assistance. Um, she passed away this year from cancer. Um, but she was a go-getter. Um, she really worked for anybody and everybody she wanted to help. She helped animals, she helped us, she helped um children, she helped some of her family communities. Um, and it's an all uh feet email ran and also a very small volunteer base like us that does really big things.

Speaker 1 23:19

Aw, she sounds like a special lady.

Speaker 2 23:22

Oh, she was. She was an amazing, amazing soul.

Speaker 1 23:26

So, where can listeners find you on social media?

Speaker 2 23:29

Uh, we are on Facebook, so you can look us up at Down River Foster Closet on Facebook. We also are on Instagram, and we just opened a YouTube channel.

Speaker 1 23:41

Nice. Yes, all right, listeners, it's time to get out your notebooks, and we're going to see what kind of tip charity and Kim have for us today. So, Kim, if someone wanted to start a nonprofit, what is one piece of advice to give them?

Speaker 23:56

Make sure you have a huge village. Um, because it, I mean, with us, it was very small, and it was just like it exploded. Um, just be ready. Watch what you wish for. I mean, it's very rewarding, but it's it's a lot. I mean, it really is.

Speaker 1 24:16

And Charity, how about you? What's your one tip for starting a nonprofit?

Speaker 2 24:20

My one tip would be lead with your heart and take a deep breath in day by day. Take it day by day because one day may be hard, but the next day may be easy, and the next day after that might become a huge reward. So just take it day by day, one foot in front of the other, and lead with your heart because I mean, anyone who starts a nonprofit is doing it for the right reason, and they have a goal in mind of helping others, and sometimes you just need to be patient and realize that the need might be mighty, and you are the right person for that task. So one step at a time.

Speaker 1 25:02

Good advice. Well, if you are inspired by these amazing ladies, Charity and Kim, and you'd like to follow them on their journey and maybe even volunteer, go ahead and find them on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and on their website, downriverfostercloset.org. I'll make sure that's all in the show notes. And ladies, Kim and Charity, thank you so much for being with us today. Thank you for having us.

Speaker 2 25:28

Yes, thank you.

Speaker 1 25:30

It was fun to get to hear a little bit more about your mission and how many families that you help. Audience, thank you for listening to the highlight her podcast. If this episode encouraged or inspired you, be sure to follow the podcast so you don't miss the next guest. After all, you never know if her story will inspire your next step.