Safe Children Coalition seeking sponsors for holiday gift campaign

While most of us look forward to the holiday season, with its promise of time spent with family, delicious meals, and extravagant gift exchanges, for children in foster care or other temporary placements, the holidays can be an especially challenging time. When children have been separated from their biological families and their schedules upended, it can cause them to feel grief, loss and anxiety rather than the joys of the holidays many of us take for granted.

Even more heartbreaking is the thought that some children in care may never have experienced a real holiday celebration – ever.

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In Florida's Circuit 12 (Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties), child welfare organization Safe Children Coalition has been working for many years to brighten the holidays for foster and other vulnerable children. The SCC Angels Holiday Gift Drive strives to share the warmth and joy of the holiday season by collecting donations of new holiday gifts to distribute during the holidays. The program matches sponsors – compassionate, caring individuals as well as entire teams from numerous area businesses – to children's gift wish lists, which are collected in late fall.

The children who will receive gifts through the SCC Angels Gift Drive include those in foster care, homeless children benefiting from SCC's Schoolhouse Link program and/or residing at SCC's Youth Shelter, youths in prevention programs like HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) and the Achievers teen leadership program, SCC's Prevention and Diversion Services, and more.

Through the SCC Angels Gift Drive last year, SCC provided approximately 900 children with holiday gifts. SCC leaders hope to at least reach that number again this year; gift list sponsors are currently being sought to help fulfill gift lists.

"We are so grateful for the steadfast support of our community each year through SCC Angels," said SCC President and CEO Brena Slater. "Their generosity does so much more than provide gifts – it reminds children that they are seen, valued, and cared for during the holiday season."

The deadline to sign up is October 31; anyone interested in making the holidays brighter for children is encouraged to visit sccfl.org/scc-angels-2026. Wish lists are distributed to sponsors between November 9-16; gifts can be dropped off by appointment at SCC (1500 Independence Blvd., Suite 210, Sarasota) between November 18-December 4; and the gifts are distributed to participating children and families before Christmas.

A company that has participated in the SCC Angels Gift Drive since 2012 is Tandem Construction. Between 2009-2021, Tandem's President, Brian Leaver, and his wife, Katherine, fostered over 60 children, providing a safe, loving home. Their passion for helping children was contagious, expanding to include the team; since its first year participating in SCC Angels, Tandem – along with its subcontractors and business partners – has fulfilled wish lists for over 1,100 children.

There is another critical connection between the company and SCC as well: Tandem Construction built SCC's new Youth Shelter, which is expected to be serving homeless and other vulnerable youths by late 2026.

"Giving back to our community is an important part of who we are at Tandem," said Elizabeth Carey, Office Manager and Human Resources Specialist for Tandem. "This program is extra meaningful for us given Brian's involvement with foster care for over 12 years. We are honored to give back to the children in our community and make a positive impact on their holiday season."

In fiscal year 2025, Safe Children Coalition served over 10,000 children in foster care and adoptions, and prevention and diversion programs. Nearly 1,700 children in our community were served in licensed foster care and out-of-home care placements.

For more about SCC, visit sccfl.org.

About Safe Children Coalition, Inc.
Safe Children Coalition, Inc. (SCC) serves as the lead agency for community-based care for Sarasota, Manatee and DeSoto counties. SCC is a collaboration between local community agencies that provide services to children and families in need. SCC is committed to protecting children, strengthening families, and building community. The core functions provided by SCC include child welfare case management, foster care, adoption, independent living, prevention, diversion, quality management, and support services as well as other social service programs. Visit sccfl.org or call 941-371-4799.