Back-to-school support for youth in foster care through Treehouse

SEATTLE, WA – Treehouse, Washington’s leading nonprofit supporting youth in foster care, has announced the start of their back-to-school drive season. 

They are welcoming shoppers and processing funding requests for the next school year. Donations are welcome any time of the year but are especially critical during the summer and into fall as youth and their caregivers get ready for the new school year.

“Over 23,000 items were given away during last year’s back to school season, and 50% of those items came from donation drives,” said Victoria Kutasz, Resources and Operations Director at Treehouse. 

“With the public’s support, we are able to meet the need, and this year, we anticipate an even greater need now that the eligibility for Treehouse programs has expanded to all school-aged youth in Washington state.”

Treehouse’s school-aged programs opened their eligibility to all youth in foster care across the state on April 3, 2023 making thousands more youth eligible to shop in the Treehouse Store or place funding requests for such expenses as school fees and extracurricular activities.

Individuals, companies and community organizations can support youth experiencing foster care this summer in a variety of ways.

The simplest way to help is to purchase items from their Amazon wish list at treehouseforkids.org/wishlist. 

This list is kept up to date with the items most requested by youth and their caregivers.

In 2022, over 1,000 youth and their caregivers statewide were supported during July and August through in-person shopping, fulfilling online orders, processing funding requests and popup shops.

In addition to the more than 23,000 items were given away through the Treehouse Store, Just-in-Time Funding approved 810 requests totaling almost $142,000. The requests ranged from extracurricular activities and school fees to personal care and technology.

About Treehouse

Treehouse envisions — and strives to create — a world where every child who has experienced foster care has the opportunities and support they need to pursue their dreams and launch successfully into independence. 

We directly support and work alongside more than 6,000 youth in foster care in Washington State, as well as their caregivers, educators, school administrators, and social workers, to ensure each young person has an individualized plan and network. 

We also advocate for systems-level change, informed by our on-the-ground expertise. Through direct programs and advocacy, Treehouse is uniquely positioned to close the opportunity gap and positively change the outcomes of youth who have experienced foster care.