2023 Year-in-Review
Friends,
We have finally crunched the numbers from all the exciting events held in 2023. We are constantly amazed at the support we receive not only within our community, but with partners from all over the country, enabling us to spread our mission. Your generosity was evident as we had our most influential year-to-date! Here is a recap of what YOU made happen in 2023:
· Baby Expo: 90 families attended our annual Baby Expo and were able to select items they needed for their baby’s first years. Clothing, shoes, blankets, car seats, toys, diapers, and more were all offered free of charge.
· Easter: Our 3rd Annual Easter Eggstravaganza was a hit as we moved from a field next to our office the previous two years, to taking over the entire Little League softball complex with activities. With over 10,000 filled eggs, games, bounce houses, a petting zoo, food and craft vendors, and, of course, the Easter Bunny, over 2,000 people were in attendance.
· Prom Drive: We were able to outfit 30 young women and men in dresses, suits, shoes, and accessories to attend their Prom – at no charge to them.
· Scholarship: Our 2nd Trade School Scholarship award of $1,500 was presented to a young lady for her enrollment in cosmetology school. She is the first person in her family to attain higher education.
· Back-to-School Event: Our 6th Annual Back-to-School Event was our biggest one yet! At our local event, 850 children were all provided new backpacks filled with school supplies, dental kits, new socks and undergarments, new tennis shoes, and gently worn clothing. Our outdoor fun area had free scholastic books, balloon animals, parent resources, kite flying and a whole lot of fun! Rich Garza, former NFL player and chaplain for the San Antonio Spurs, was in attendance and spoke to all about making good choices as they enter into the new school year. We then traveled to Virginia for our 2nd Annual Drive-Thru Back-to-School event and, with the coordination and support of Finlay Fire, distributed over 1,000 supply filled backpacks throughout Northeast Virginia. Additionally, 100 backpacks and school supplies were sent to Marietta, Georgia, in support of a local school in need at that location. In total, 1,950 children benefited from our 2023y Back-to-School Events!
· Trunk-or-Treat: Supported the 2nd Annual Lockhart Trunk-or-Treat event, benefiting the Lockhart Special Olympics Program. Over 500 children attended this event.
· Thanksgiving Meals: We were able to support families in three school districts, providing them with everything they needed to cook their own Thanksgiving meal. 595 children and 415 adults in 204 families were served, for a total of 1010 Thanksgiving meals! This was a 60% increase over 2021.
· Pegasus Christmas Store: A Christmas ‘store’ was set up at the Pegasus campus and all 140 young men in the program were able to ‘shop’ for a gift for a special adult in their life. Some picked out gifts for a parent, some for their caseworker or Pegasus staff. After they picked their gift, we helped them wrap it up – some presents got uniquely wrapped and a lot of tape was used, but we had a great time! Those who picked a gift for a family member were able to present it to them the very next day, which was Family Day.
· Santa Letters: Approximately 150 children wrote letters to Santa and dropped them off in our special North Pole Santa Mailbox! Santa wrote back every child who sent in a letter!
· Christmas Gifts: An unprecedented 513 children in 161 families were placed on our Elf Tree this past Christmas, up from 325 children the previous year. When it felt like we would not be able to support these The children were sponsored by the local community and our facility had so many gifts in it you could barely walk through!
· Walk-Ins: 4:12 Kids accepts walk-in appointments all year round. In 2023, we had 102 families come to us for support for items such as shoes, clothing, hygiene items, etc. This was more than double the 46 walk-ins in 2022.
· Clothing Closets: Clothing ‘closets’ were created in three of our local schools. These spaces are supplied with clothing, shoes, undergarments, socks, hygiene items, and more and allow for school personnel to address the immediate needs of a child.
· Awards: We received the 2023 Best of Caldwell County Non-Profit Award, presented by the Lockhart Post Register, for the 3rd year in a row! We were truly honored to receive this award and know that we could not accomplish anything without the support of donors and volunteers like you.
Volunteers are the heart of our organization. In 2023, our volunteers spent over 1,000 hours of personal time working in our office and at events!
In all, we had nearly 6,000 children who participated in our programs in 2023 - WOW! We are looking forward to 2024 as we envision even more lives impacted for good. Of course, we cannot do this without your support.
If you would like to contribute to the programs / events we have planned for this year, you may do so at any time by clicking on the DONATE button above. You may also find out what it takes to be a volunteer by clicking GET INVOLVED.
We are so grateful for your support in what God is doing in and through 4:12 Kids and we are excited to continue taking these programs into 2024.
We have finally crunched the numbers from all the exciting events held in 2023. We are constantly amazed at the support we receive not only within our community, but with partners from all over the country, enabling us to spread our mission. Your generosity was evident as we had our most influential year-to-date! Here is a recap of what YOU made happen in 2023:
· Baby Expo: 90 families attended our annual Baby Expo and were able to select items they needed for their baby’s first years. Clothing, shoes, blankets, car seats, toys, diapers, and more were all offered free of charge.
· Easter: Our 3rd Annual Easter Eggstravaganza was a hit as we moved from a field next to our office the previous two years, to taking over the entire Little League softball complex with activities. With over 10,000 filled eggs, games, bounce houses, a petting zoo, food and craft vendors, and, of course, the Easter Bunny, over 2,000 people were in attendance.
· Prom Drive: We were able to outfit 30 young women and men in dresses, suits, shoes, and accessories to attend their Prom – at no charge to them.
· Scholarship: Our 2nd Trade School Scholarship award of $1,500 was presented to a young lady for her enrollment in cosmetology school. She is the first person in her family to attain higher education.
· Back-to-School Event: Our 6th Annual Back-to-School Event was our biggest one yet! At our local event, 850 children were all provided new backpacks filled with school supplies, dental kits, new socks and undergarments, new tennis shoes, and gently worn clothing. Our outdoor fun area had free scholastic books, balloon animals, parent resources, kite flying and a whole lot of fun! Rich Garza, former NFL player and chaplain for the San Antonio Spurs, was in attendance and spoke to all about making good choices as they enter into the new school year. We then traveled to Virginia for our 2nd Annual Drive-Thru Back-to-School event and, with the coordination and support of Finlay Fire, distributed over 1,000 supply filled backpacks throughout Northeast Virginia. Additionally, 100 backpacks and school supplies were sent to Marietta, Georgia, in support of a local school in need at that location. In total, 1,950 children benefited from our 2023y Back-to-School Events!
· Trunk-or-Treat: Supported the 2nd Annual Lockhart Trunk-or-Treat event, benefiting the Lockhart Special Olympics Program. Over 500 children attended this event.
· Thanksgiving Meals: We were able to support families in three school districts, providing them with everything they needed to cook their own Thanksgiving meal. 595 children and 415 adults in 204 families were served, for a total of 1010 Thanksgiving meals! This was a 60% increase over 2021.
· Pegasus Christmas Store: A Christmas ‘store’ was set up at the Pegasus campus and all 140 young men in the program were able to ‘shop’ for a gift for a special adult in their life. Some picked out gifts for a parent, some for their caseworker or Pegasus staff. After they picked their gift, we helped them wrap it up – some presents got uniquely wrapped and a lot of tape was used, but we had a great time! Those who picked a gift for a family member were able to present it to them the very next day, which was Family Day.
· Santa Letters: Approximately 150 children wrote letters to Santa and dropped them off in our special North Pole Santa Mailbox! Santa wrote back every child who sent in a letter!
· Christmas Gifts: An unprecedented 513 children in 161 families were placed on our Elf Tree this past Christmas, up from 325 children the previous year. When it felt like we would not be able to support these The children were sponsored by the local community and our facility had so many gifts in it you could barely walk through!
· Walk-Ins: 4:12 Kids accepts walk-in appointments all year round. In 2023, we had 102 families come to us for support for items such as shoes, clothing, hygiene items, etc. This was more than double the 46 walk-ins in 2022.
· Clothing Closets: Clothing ‘closets’ were created in three of our local schools. These spaces are supplied with clothing, shoes, undergarments, socks, hygiene items, and more and allow for school personnel to address the immediate needs of a child.
· Awards: We received the 2023 Best of Caldwell County Non-Profit Award, presented by the Lockhart Post Register, for the 3rd year in a row! We were truly honored to receive this award and know that we could not accomplish anything without the support of donors and volunteers like you.
Volunteers are the heart of our organization. In 2023, our volunteers spent over 1,000 hours of personal time working in our office and at events!
In all, we had nearly 6,000 children who participated in our programs in 2023 - WOW! We are looking forward to 2024 as we envision even more lives impacted for good. Of course, we cannot do this without your support.
If you would like to contribute to the programs / events we have planned for this year, you may do so at any time by clicking on the DONATE button above. You may also find out what it takes to be a volunteer by clicking GET INVOLVED.
We are so grateful for your support in what God is doing in and through 4:12 Kids and we are excited to continue taking these programs into 2024.