Wired Gives Back: Families Helping Families of Iowa

Back-to-School: Wired Production Group Serves Families in Foster Care 

Since 2018, Wired Production Group has been a proud supporter of Families Helping Families of Iowa. This year, Wired has been able to support the Back to School Rally through school supply donations and volunteer assistance for the event in Cedar Rapids. 

Families Helping Families: Serving the Foster Care Community Across Iowa

The programming and services provided by Families Helping Families are offered to children in all 99 Iowa counties, with the majority of the focus in the Cedar Rapids-Iowa City area. Children in this area range from newborn to 18 years old and come from a wide variety of ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. There is a lack of resources available to youth in this underserved demographic – and the Families Helping Families’ team of volunteers is involved in making a difference in this area.

Currently, there are nearly 10,000 children in the foster care system within the state of Iowa. According to Families Helping Families, the average foster child moves seven times before the age of 18 where they begin to navigate the world as an adult and typically with little to no personal items. Families Helping Families offers access to basic personal items, such as clothing, food, and hygiene products, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They are the only social services organization in the Eastern Iowa area that offers these services. 

In addition to the physical resources they offer, Families Helping Families offers a variety of other programs and services for foster children and their families, including, but not limited to: 

• Scholarships for extracurricular activities and tutoring/academic support
• Shoe vouchers for ages 4 to 18 to purchase new shoes at Kohl’s, in partnership with the Kiwanis Club of Cedar Rapids
• Professional photos for graduating seniors
• Complimentary haircuts
• Clothing Closet with access to free clothing, shoes, and supplies for infants, children, and teens

Back to School Rally 

Families Helping Families hosts their annual back-to-school event to serve Iowa’s youth in foster care ranging from preschool through 12th grade. Each registered child is eligible to receive a backpack and school supplies at the rally at Hawkeye Downs Speedway and Expo Center in August. 

At the rally, backpacks are delivered in person to students in foster care, relative placement, other approved placement, or adopted from foster care in Cedar Rapids. Additionally, Families Helping Families partners with Four Oaks to deliver pre-stuffed backpacks to youth in Waterloo, Iowa and Ankeny, Iowa. 

In total, the backpack rally serves over 700 children across Iowa. Wired Production Group was proud to host a school supply drive during the month of July. In total, Wired Production Group was able to donate 30 backpacks as well as a large number of school supplies, including binders, notebooks, folders, Sharpies, pens, pencils, erasers, and headphones. Thank you to our Wired Production Group staff, families, friends, clients, and vendors who supported our school supply drive to benefit Families Helping Families this summer! 

Why Wired Supports Foster Care Families in Iowa

At Wired Production Group, our staff comes from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds from all across the country. The majority of our staff have families of their own. Wired Production Group understands that foster care is a safe place for children to continue to grow in a stable environment. As foster families share their homes and hearts with the foster children in Iowa, our team chooses to share their resources with foster children as an organization. We are able to donate our time, our talents, and our treasure to Families Helping Families of Iowa throughout the year with our main focus on their back-to-school rally in the summer months. Our team enjoys working behind the scenes to create joy in the lives of foster children in foster care across Iowa. These children have a sense of creativity and kindness in them that our staff looks forward to having in the events and entertainment industry workforce in the future. 

How to Get Involved with Families Helping Families of Iowa

If you’re interested in supporting Families Helping Families of Iowa, there are a variety of ways to support their mission:

• Volunteer your time or services. You can find a list of current volunteer opportunities on their website and Facebook page. 
• Donate. You can contribute financially online or drop off new or gently used children’s clothing or personal items at their office at 6000 7th St SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404.
• Participate in events and fundraisers. Families Helping Families has community partners that produce fundraising events across Iowa, including bingo night at Lucky’s on 16th, Need Pizza Beer Run, and Cedar Rapids Hot Cider Hustle.
• Make a connection. Take the time to follow Families Helping Families on social media and like, comment on, and share their posts. Offer a public testimonial on Facebook or Google about their services in our community. Encourage other friends, family members, and organizations in your network to connect with Families Helping Families. You never know when a connection will spark a positive chain reaction!