BY DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ

david.horowitz@bgdailynews.com

People can donate new blankets for foster children at four additional Bowling Green drop-off sites through Feb. 14.

The initiative, which began Monday, includes drop-off points at the Lisa Rice Library (1225 State St.), Bob Kirby Branch (175 Iron Skillet Court), Davis & Sons (304 Gordon Ave.) and the Southern Lanes bowling alley (2710 Scottsville Road).

It’s the fifth annual Wrapped in Love Blanket Drive organized by the nationwide foster care company StepStone Family & Youth Service of Kentucky, which also takes blankets at its Bowling Green office (1300 Andrea St., Suite 204).

“Many children in foster care, they move from home to home, often without a lot of their personal belongings, and so, a blanket is something that feels like their own and can really make a difference in providing that comfort during their uncertain time of what’s going to happen next,” said Ashley Sullivan, licensing specialist at the Bowling Green-based StepStone office. “We wanted to offer them a physical reminder that they’re cared for and that people in the community are thinking of them – so, these blankets are meant to be for warmth and comfort for kids who are in our foster care.”

When a child comes into the state’s care, the state finds an agency such as StepStone that has a home to place the child in, Sullivan said. These agencies employ people such as her, tasked with recruiting homes and walking potential foster parents through the home-study licensing process, where upon completion of training and all required documentation, a home can be officially licensed to foster youth in out-of-home care.

The StepStone office will hand out blankets to Stepstone-licensed foster homes within the 20-county service region, which consists largely of Warren County and the surrounding areas. Alongside the blankets, StepStone adds personalized notes with statements such as, “You’re loved,” or, “We hope this brings you warmth and comfort,” Sullivan said.

Any new blanket – throw blanket, fleece blanket and so on – will do, Sullivan said, adding, “No preference, just as long as it’s a blanket, something that’s comfortable.”

StepStone will distribute them, one per youth, up to age 21, she said, and save some for incoming children.

“We’re always receiving referrals and new kids who are entering care with our agencies,” Sullivan said.

It currently has fewer than 10 blankets remaining from donations, according to Sullivan. Due to limited foster home availability, the Bowling Green-based StepStone operation must turn away dozens of referrals for children coming into care each day.

“In hopes to better serve our community we are currently recruiting right here in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and the surrounding counties,” she said.

Kentucky has 8,301 children in out-of-home care, including 1,141 in what’s known as the two rivers region, which includes Warren County and the surrounding counties, according to the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

“If anyone is interested in becoming a foster parent, there’s such a huge need for homes to foster children in out-of-home care,” Sullivan said.