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Thanks for making holidays brighter for foster, at-risk youth
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This year, Aspiranet partnered with 39 Starbucks stores in Stanislaus and Merced counties for our annual Holiday Gift Drive, where we collected 810 gifts for the foster and at-risk youth we serve with the help and generosity of Starbucks customers. The holidays, which can be a difficult time for our youth because they are separated from parents and/or siblings, becomes a time when our youth feel the support of the community.

This gift drive is part of Aspiranet’s larger Starbucks gift drive across the state, which has been running for the past six years. This year, in partnership with 300 Starbucks stores, we collected and distributed 5,000 gifts for foster and at-risk youth!

This year, our gift drive went virtual, and we placed gift tags to support transition aged youth in many Starbucks stores across the state. Transition aged youth are children who enter foster care and remain there until age 18, and are then challenged to make the leap to independence without the support that a traditional family might provide.

The heart of Aspiranet’s work is finding loving and caring homes for children in foster care, particularly older youth and siblings. If you are moved to learn more about foster care and adoption, please visit www.aspiranetheroes.org to learn more.

Thank you to my internal team, the entire Starbucks team, and to each person who generously participated in making this year’s gift drive a success. 

— Sandra Genova, Core Program Director of Aspiranet Turlock