How to Help in the Crisis of Unaccompanied Children

Several weeks ago, President Obama declared the Unaccompanied Children a humanitarian crisis. These are children migrating to the United States without a caregiver. The number of children apprehended at the U.S./Mexico border between 2004 and 2011 averaged 6,800 per year. In 2012, that total jumped to over 13,000 children, and then to 24,000 in 2013. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of

Refugee Resettlement (HHS/ORR) estimates between 60,000-90,000 unaccompanied children could enter the U.S. in 2014.

This webpage: http://catholiccharitiesfortworth.org/unaccompaniedchildren outlines what is happening and gives options to help.

Some easy, one-time donation examples are Wal-Mart gift cards (any amount) for us to buy vital supplies, coloring books & crayons for the younger kids, and body spray (for males and females) for some of the older youth.

They also have a short list of items needed for Welcome Boxes that are given to children when they first arrive:

Welcome Boxes

1 Plastic shoebox sized container
1 Shampoo
1 Conditioner
1 Body Wash/Bar Soap
1 Toothpaste
1 Toothbrush
1 Brush/Comb
1 Pack of Hair Ties
1 Deodorant
1 Small Toy

(Any items and/or gift cards can be dropped off at our Creating Hope Donation Center at: 249 Thornhill Drive Fort Worth, TX 76115 Monday –Thursday, 8AM-1PM.)

http://catholiccharitiesfortworth.org/unaccompaniedchildren
http://catholiccharitiesfortworth.org/assessmentcenter