To kick off May as National Foster Care Month, Long Beach State Guardian Scholars and Fostering Futures are holding two joint events starting May 1.
The first event is an on-campus Foster Care Awareness Celebration that is on May 1 at 2 p.m. The event is being held to celebrate foster youth students on campus and will be located in the Southwest Terrace of the University Student Union building.
Snacks and drinks will be provided and Georgette Shobeiri, member of Guardian Scholars and president of Fostering Futures, said attendees will get a chance to meet the members of Fostering Futures and Guardian Scholars.
“We’re going to talk about our personal experiences, how we decided to go to college and the support we’ve gotten from Guardian Scholars,” Shobeiri said.
The other event, Pancakes 4 a Purpose, will be held later that week on May 4 and off campus at The Breakfast Bar, located at the corner of Fourth Street and Redondo Avenue in Long Beach.
The charity block party is hosted by the Beadel Family Foundation and Guardian Scholars will have an all-you-can-eat pancake meal and there will also be games, raffles and music. The Beadel Family Foundation is a local non-profit group that holds food-based charity events that help at risk youth, foster youth and mental health organizations.
Tickets are $15 for children and $20 for adults and can be purchased online. All proceeds go to Guardian Scholars, which in turn supports Fostering Futures. The goal is $10,000 and Shobeiri said she was told by administration at Guardian Scholars that the group is close to their goal.
CSULB Guardian Scholars is a division of Student Services that is dedicated to giving services and support to former and current foster students on campus. Fostering Futures is the student led offshoot of Guardian Scholars.
In order to become a member of Guardian Scholars, a person must have been in a foster care program, but Fostering Futures is open to both foster students and their allies.
Roberta Frame is a foster youth student, a fourth-year public relations major and a cabinet member for Fostering Futures. Frame said the help she’s gotten through Fostering Futures and Guardian Scholars has been invaluable.
“Since I was 10, I’ve been in and out of the [foster care] system up until 18, and if it wasn’t for programs like Guardian Scholars and other communities that I’ve gotten I’ve gotten involved in, I feel like I wouldn’t be where I am today,” Frame said. “They’re like my support, like my school family.”
CSULB Guardian Scholars can be reached through their website and Fostering Futures can be reached through their Linktree page.