MONTGOMERY COUNTY — It’s a Valentine’s Day tradition.
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Hundreds of bears donated to kids who are dealing with a whole lot in the county’s care.
Bag after bag, they are carried into Montgomery County’s children’s center.
Around 900 teddy bears were dropped off by the National Council of Negro Women.
It’s become a tradition that has lasted more than 20 years.
But this year, they were able to collect more bears than ever.
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“This is really, really sweet because the more children that we can impact and show love to, the better,” Donna Kuykendall with the National Council of Negro Women said.
It may seem simple but Craig Rickett, associate director of the county’s children services division, said each of these bears makes a difference.
“The children and the families that we work with have been exposed to so much,” Rickett said. “To have the children have that small token to take with them, to hold, to cuddle through a very difficult, traumatic time is really immeasurable.”
Right now there are about 700 kids in the county’s care.
Many of them often wait for foster homes.
It’s something Commissioner Carolyn Rice is working to highlight.
“To help one child, you can change the trajectory of their life,” Rice said.
Whether it’s becoming a foster parent or donating a teddy bear
The group is already looking to get teddy bears together to keep sharing the love next year.
To learn more about becoming a foster parent visit here.
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