Raise the Future receives generous donation from Wendy's in Lakewood to address family permanency
Inside a Lakewood Wendy's on Wednesday, the excitement was palpable. Representatives from The Wendy's Company presented a $10,000 donation to Raise the Future, a Colorado-based organization dedicated to reducing the amount of time that youth in foster care live without a permanent family in the tri-state area.
The donation is one of 16 grants announced by Wendy's to support a variety of organizations across the U.S. and Canada that align with the company's core categories of charitable support, including foster care adoption.
Raise the Future was nominated for the grant by Wendy's division marketing manager, Gretchen Paules.
The gift will support programs that connect kids in foster care with loving families faster and provide education, training, support and coaching to heal trauma and help families build strong attachments.
This award is an extension of Wendy's long-established local relationship with the cause, which began in the 1990s.
"We are pleased to present you with this check to continue your community effort," said Paules, smiling as she presented the check to the Raise the Future team.
Wendy's founder Dave Thomas has a special connection to foster care, as he was adopted as a child himself.
"He just really believed in finding children forever homes," Paules said.
Raise the Future CEO Ann Ayers says youth will see the impact first-hand.
"It makes a huge difference when you're sitting with a child and talking with them about what you need and healing some of that trauma. My team and I need this, we need to know you're behind us. And it matters a lot," Ayers said.
Raise the Future works in close partnership with the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption, Wendy's charity of choice.
Through its Wendy's Wonderful Kids program, the foundation supports the hiring of adoption professionals who are dedicated to finding permanent families for children in foster care who are most often overlooked.
That includes teenagers, children with special needs and siblings.
As a result, children referred to Wendy's Wonderful Kids are up to three times more likely to be adopted.
Since 2005, Raise the Future and the Foundation have worked together to serve more than 500 youth in Colorado, along with 1,090 in Utah and Nevada through the program.
Learn more about the work that Raise the Future does and its partnership with CBS News Colorado through weekly Wednesday's Child segments.
