CAPE CORAL, Fla. — A Southwest Florida nonprofit has opened its first Lee County location to provide crucial support for foster families, establishing a resource center in a Cape Coral home where families can get clothing, facilitate sibling visits and create a safe space for children.
Hear why the Director of Operations says the new resource center is vital for Lee County:
Foster Village has transformed a southeast Cape Coral house into a comprehensive support hub designed to serve the county's large foster care population.
Kacie Hass, director of operations for Foster Village, oversees the facility's preparation to assist hundreds of Lee County families at a moment's notice. The center addresses a critical need in the region's foster care system.
"Right now, there are over 600 children in foster care in Southwest Florida, but there's 407 of them are just in Lee County, so the need was so huge that we knew that we really needed to have a space for these families," Hass said.
Foster families often receive emergency calls in the middle of the night, informing them that a child will be placed in their home with little advance notice.
"Most of the time they come with nothing," Hass said.
The space functions as a one-stop resource center, providing essential items like clothing, diapers, and car seats to new foster families. Beyond material support, the facility emphasizes community building and empowerment for the children it serves.
"Kids can actually come in and shop," said Hass. "It gives that sense of control back a little bit."
The center addresses a significant challenge facing the foster care system: caregiver retention.
"Right now, 50% of caregivers will quit in their first year due to isolation, due to lack of support, and so we knew that this community, especially because how big the need is," Hass said.
The resource center extends its services beyond active foster families, welcoming recently reunited families who have transitioned out of the foster system.
"We're really building relationships with them, you know, we're becoming a family, a village," Hass said.
While the resource center officially opens Saturday, Foster Village is already providing assistance to families in need throughout Lee County. Hass says the public is welcome to come see the new center and learn more about it Saturday from 10 AM until 2 PM.
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