AUSTIN, Ind. (WDRB) -- The Refuge is fundraising for the last 20% of the $650,000 needed to build a safe home for children in need in Scott County.
The project started in 2016 with the goal of building a facility that could provide emergency housing for children being displaced from their homes for safety reasons. The 501C3 organization has been raising funds for the last few years and working with the Department of Child Services in order to develop the plans.
“This was one more, what we like to call, a piece of the puzzle to try and take care of the kids here in the county,” said Al Riggle, a board member at The Refuge.
The need for a home like this has been fueled by the opioid crisis. Between the years of 2014 and 2018, the number of children removed from their homes has nearly doubled, Riggle said. And almost half of those kids are placed in homes or facilities outside the county they are originally from.
“Not only are they taken away from their home, but now they’ve lost their friends," Riggle said. "They’ve changed schools. It adds to the trauma."
Often, children are removed from their homes in the middle of the night, making it difficult to find a family member to take care of the child. And there is a lack of foster families available across the state. So The Refuge would allow children to stay in Scott County until a more stable home is secured for them.
“We have some wonderful kids in this community,” Riggle said. “And some of our kids just come from very disadvantaged situations. And because of the trauma they’ve experienced, they’re already working behind some of the other kids that don’t have to deal with child abuse and all that. Here we can help them.”
The Refuge budgeted $650,000 to build the facility and get it running. The nonprofit still needs to raise about $130,000 to make it happen, and then the board plans to start what will be an annual campaign in the spring in order to maintain and fund the project.
They hope to break ground in the late spring. If you would like to learn more about the project or make a donation, click here.
Copyright 2020 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
