FosterJoy was born from a simple question:
How can we make this moment a little better for a child?
After opening our home to foster children, we (Jose and Heidi) have welcomed four children over four years. Our foster care journey has brought incredible moments of love, connection, and change. It also has opened our eyes to some of the difficult realities children in foster care experience.
Two of the children who came into our home arrived carrying their belongings in nothing more than a plastic trash bag.
That image stayed with us.
A child entering foster care is already experiencing so much uncertainty. They may be leaving their home, their family, their school, and everything familiar. Having to carry the few things they own in a plastic bag meant for trash can make an already difficult moment feel even harder.
We knew there had to be a better way.
A duffel bag may seem like a simple thing, but to a child, it can mean so much. It says, your belongings matter. You matter. You deserve to have something of your own.
Our foster care experience has also shown us how important it is to celebrate children. Birthdays can be especially meaningful—a chance for a child to feel remembered, valued, and celebrated simply for being who they are.
One of the children we fostered eventually became our son, making our journey even more personal and reminding us just how much a child can become part of our heart and our family.
Those experiences inspired FosterJoy.
Today, FosterJoy focuses on two simple ways to care for children in foster care: providing duffel bags during difficult transitions and birthday boxes that help children feel remembered and celebrated.
We may not be able to change everything a child is going through. But we can change a moment.
We can replace a plastic trash bag with something that belongs to them. We can make a birthday feel special. And we can remind a child that, even in the middle of uncertainty, they are seen, valued, and cared for.
Hard moments made a little lighter. Happy moments made a little brighter.
