Sweetest Day: History of Giving to Youth in Out of Home Care

Every October, greeting card aisles throughout the Midwest are filled with colorful messages about Sweetest Day – a holiday about showing special attention to loved ones, especially your sweetheart. However, did you know that the origins of Sweetest Day tell a different story; a story focused on children facing adversity? Join our Sweetest Day Call to Action by learning about the history of this special holiday and dedicating yourself to supporting children in foster care.

Sweetest
Day Originated to Support Children in Need

Herbert Birch Kingston, a philanthropist and candy company employee from Ohio, wanted to create a special day where children in adverse situations received special care and acknowledgment. He recognized that children in group homes and those homebound by illness did not always receive the attention and treatment given to other youth.

On the third Saturday in October, 1922, Kingston began to distribute candy and small gifts to these children with the help of his friends. He garnered support from local and national celebrities and successfully managed to provide more than 10,000 treats and toys to children in need.

While Sweetest Day is now celebrated primarily by partners
and significant others in the Midwest, we ask you to remember the origins of
the holiday this year and consider paying special tribute to the memory of
Herbert Birch Kingston by helping SOS Children’s Villages Illinois continue to
make a positive difference in the lives of children in foster care.

How You
Can Get Involved This Year for Sweetest Day

Consider
Becoming a Full-Time Foster Parent

At SOS Illinois, we train and employ full-time Foster Parents that care for up to six siblings in a single-family home
in one of our three Village communities. Like Herbert Birch Kingston, our Foster Parents believe
that children in adverse situations deserve love and support.

What better way to put your passion for children and your
heart for mission to good use this Sweetest Day than by sharing this unique
parenting opportunity with someone you love?

If you or someone you know would like to become a Foster
Parent and are interested in seeing if you’d be a good fit in the SOS
Children’s Villages Illinois family, let us know
by filling out this form.
You may also contact our Director of Recruitment at 312-372-8200.

Keep the
Sweetness Coming Through Monthly Giving

Whether you are learning about SOS Children’s Villages
Illinois for the first time or are a decade-long donor, consider joining our monthly giving program, Dream Makers, in honor of Sweetest Day. As a Dream Maker, your
automatic monthly gifts help provide the sustained resources needed to assist
the youth in our care as they grow in three key areas:

Educational Development
Health and Wellness
Cultural Enrichment

Your monthly Dream Maker contribution is the easiest and
most efficient way to support children in foster care at SOS Illinois. “Treats”
of all sizes make a profound difference in the opportunities we are able to
provide to the children and families in our community. You can easily start now
as part of our Sweetest Day Call to
Action!

Share the
Story of Sweetest Day and SOS Illinois

Looking for even more ways to support our Sweetest Day Call to Action? Subscribe to
our e-newsletter and share our posts on social media! It’s simple. It’s cost-free. And it helps us spread the
word about the mission here at SOS Children’s Villages Illinois.

Each time you share our posts on social media, you’re
helping us reach outside of our networks and into the hearts of those around
the world. In honor of our Sweetest Day
Call to Action, we invite you to engage with us on our various social media
platforms and invite your loved ones to do the same!

Sharing small gifts and tokens of kindness on Sweetest Day
remind our loved ones that they hold a unique place in the world. This Sweetest
Day, honor the origins of the holiday by offering the same sweet sentiments to
children in foster care. Your love and support for them creates a lasting
impression that will extend far beyond a single day in the year.

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