he annual signature event for the Foundation is its Christmas Party for Pinellas County foster children. Every year, over 450 foster children and their foster parents attend this party. It’s a gala night filled with food, live entertainment, mimes, clowns, caricature artists, face painting and arts and crafts.

Perhaps most important to the children is the visit from Santa and his elves for they bring three to four beautiful, brand new gifts for every child.

The annual Christmas party is a large community effort involving approximately 70 volunteers, financial contributions from local businesses and individuals, and donations from such local and national businesses as Motown Records, Wendy’s and Overstock.com. This event is fun for all—the kids, their parents, and all the volunteers.

Check out this great article about 2007's Foster Children's Christmas Party carried on WTSP Channel 10's website:
http://www.tampabays10.com/news/local/article.aspx?storyid=69713

Hands of Hope Quilt
n 1995, Cherish the Children Foundation launched its first internationally heralded project, the Hands of Hope Quilt. Embroidered on a background of black velvet are hundreds of colorful pieces of silk containing the name of each foster child whose hand shaped the piece (click on photo for a larger view). Running through the middle is a quote by famous humanitarian, L. Ron Hubbard. “A good, stable adult with love and tolerance in his heart is about the best therapy a child can have.”

In May of 1996, the Foundation raised enough money to take ten foster families to Washington, DC, to present the quilt to First Lady Hillary Clinton at the White House. Since then, it’s been presented to key Florida legislators in Tallahassee and to the President of the nation of Kazakhstan.

Back to School Event
his project has resulted from a collaboration between Cherish the Children Foundation and community groups from the North Greenwood district; home to many disadvantaged children and low-income families. The event has typically been held at Jack Russell Stadium. Families from the community line up as early as 7:00am for the event scheduled to start at 10:00am. By the time the event ends, 500 disadvantaged children who may have gone to school with few or no school supplies were able, instead, to start school with a wonderful treasure trove of school supplies, dictionaries, classical books and new backpacks.