Healing Hearts & Homes

By Austria Cohn

“Children living in poverty are more likely to be in poor health, less likely to graduate high school on time, and are more likely to live in poverty as adults,” states A Precious Child. “A Precious Child assists children and families facing difficult life challenges such as abuse and neglect, crisis situations, and poverty.”

As parents, taking your children to the store can sometimes be a disastrous mistake. They might comb every aisle and find something “they can’t live without.” From toys, candy, and sugary cereal, they can almost become lawyers because of how persuasive they are. If you’re up for the fight, you’ll tell them why they can’t have the (cheaply made) $20 stuffed animal from King Soopers, or you might be exhausted after a long day and cave to your child’s demands.

For parents and caregivers struggling with finances, the trip to the store can be embarrassing and heartbreaking when telling a child “no.” A child might need new shoes because the soles are worn on their other pair or a new toy because they aced a challenging math test; either way, if finances are tight, parents might not be able to provide their child with essentials. It can be painful for these parents to say “no” to their children who need these things.

A Precious Child, a local nonprofit in Broomfield, has built a cost-free store for struggling families that allows them to say “yes” to whatever their child asks for without the dollar amount hanging over their heads.

“We are a nonprofit that provides opportunities and resources to children and families in need to empower them to thrive,” says Courtney Wickberg, the Chief Communications Officer for A Precious Child. “The need for quality donations is super critical because we want to make sure families coming in to shop feel that sense of dignity and respect. We never want a family to be looking for something, and it’s ripped and stained, and for them to associate their worth with that.”

From clothes, shoes, and sports equipment to strollers, diapers, food, toys, and books, the group provides resources so children and their families can be successful, happy, and healthy. By supplying families with these necessities, parents are able to put their limited resources towards crucial living expenses like housing, utilities, transportation, healthcare, etc.

“There are more than 250,000 children that are living below the self-sufficiency standard in the eight-county service area that A Precious Child serves,” Wickberg says. “Such a big number of children aren’t able to go to school with the supplies they need… It’s children who aren’t going to school with the clothes that make them feel confident and good.”

The Empowerment Resource Center not only has a no-cost store for families to shop at, but it also offers several programs, like Eduessentials, Fill A Backpack, giveARTS and giveSPORTS, and more. Each program focuses on the entire child and their needs, from workforce development and helping children with learning disorders or behavioral health concerns to providing support for arts and sports program costs (equipment, registration, participation fees, etc.).

This organization partners with over 500 agencies, like schools, police departments, foster care, and shelters. This partnership allows agencies to identify a family in need and provide them with information and a referral to A Precious Child to receive assistance.

There are several ways to support the nonprofit’s mission, like donating resources, goods, or money; volunteering; attending an event; or hosting a drive. To learn more about this nonprofit that’s changing lives, visit apreciouschild.org.