SCE Credit Union to partner with Barely Canadian and Comfort Cases for National Foster Care Awareness Month

Rob Sheer

​In honor of National Foster Care Awareness Month, SCE Credit Union (SCE FCU) announced today they will donate a Comfort Case® backpack and Barely Canadian hoodie to youth in foster care for every new account opened in May. Donations will be made through nonprofits helping and supporting children in foster care, including Echoes of Hope, Kidsave and Foster Nation, among others.

This announcement expands SCE FCU’s investment in the community following a $1 million, five-year partnership with the YMCA-LA and a recent partnership with Los Angeles County, unveiling their Youth Access Banking program, specifically for youth in foster care.

“We are incredibly proud to partner with Barely Canadian and Comfort Cases on this initiative during National Foster Care Awareness Month,” said Jennifer Oliver, president and chief executive officer of SCE Credit Union. “Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. Both Barely Canadian and Comfort Cases share our values and deep sense of responsibility to serve the greater good.”

There are approximately 437,500 youth in foster care in the United States. They are typically given a trash bag to pack up their belongings when they’re removed from their homes. Comfort Cases works to eliminate trash bags from the system and show children in foster care that they matter and there are people who love them.

Comfort Cases backpacks are filled with new, essential comfort and personal care items for youth entering and exiting the foster care system, including pajamas, blankets, towels, hygiene kits, books, journals, coloring books, crayons or pencils, and stuffed animals.

Barely Canadian is a family business that creates incredibly soft apparel and supports youth in foster care through donating a percentage of sales to foster care nonprofits. Each donated Comfort Case and Barely Canadian hoodie has a combined value of over $400.

Similarly, SCE FCU’s partnership with Los Angeles County on their Youth Access Banking program allows youth in foster care as young as 13 to open their own checking and savings accounts without an adult co-owner, with SCE FCU providing an initial $5 deposit to establish the savings account.

“As someone who has fostered and adopted foster children, we wanted a way to continue serving youth in foster care while creating a quality product that showcased our vision,” said Kelly Slattery, founder and chief executive officer of Barely Canadian. “By partnering with SCE Credit Union, we’re working together to support countless kids while giving them items to bring them comfort and warmth when they enter the foster care system.”

“At the age of 12, I entered the foster care system carrying my belongings in a black trash bag and when I ‘aged out’ of the system at 18, I was handed that same black trash bag and was homeless as a senior in high school,” states Rob Scheer, founder and chief executive officer of Comfort Cases. “When our first children came to us through foster care many years later, I was shocked that they were carrying those same trash bags. It had to stop. Comfort Cases appreciates like-minded organizations such as SCE Credit Union and Barely Canadian who step up with programs like this with the potential to help hundreds, if not thousands, of youth in foster care.  We’re especially proud to support this initiative during National Foster Care Awareness Month.”

The initiative will run for the entire month of May. Comfort Cases with Barely Canadian hoodies will be supplied to youth in foster care for every new account opened with SCE Credit Union to support as many youth as possible. To learn more about SCE Credit Union or to open an account, visit their website at scefcu.org/makeadifference.

To learn more about Echoes of Hope, Kidsave and Foster Nation visit their websites at:
echoesofhope.org, kidsave.org and fosternation.org.

---