Natasha Waters may not work for Abbott House, but to her, that doesn’t make their mission any less meaningful.
For 80 years, Abbott House has provided children to young adults, ages 7 to 23, with a second chance at youth — a place of hope and recovery for those who have suffered trauma and abuse.
In partnership with the non-profit, Waters, a child advocate from Wessington Springs, decided to kick off the Give for Kids Raffle to raise money that can help change the lives of victims of childhood trauma.
“I really admire the work that they do there,” Waters said, “helping kids that have been through a lot.”
During the month of November, Waters and her team are organizing a raffle that will benefit Abbott House children.
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The Give for Kids Raffle, a new fundraiser, is selling $5 raffle tickets through the end of November for a chance to win a variety of prizes, ranging from 100 pounds of ground beef to $2,500 in cash.
Funds raised from the raffle will go toward two of the non-profit’s initiatives — providing Christmas gifts to Abbott House children and purchasing licenses for an education software.
“You want to give them something special to have them feel like they're wanted or feel like they're loved,” Waters said of helping provide Christmas gifts.
The non-profit is also working to provide children access to a system called Edgenuity, a blended learning program that can help children complete schoolwork at a pace that best fits their life.
“A lot of foster kids are at high risk of losing (educational) credits,” Waters, who also used to teach in Wessington Springs, said. “(Edgenuity) is a learning software where children at the Abbott House can go to school … and kind of go at their own pace and not fall behind.”
Any funds that aren’t used for Christmas gifts or Edgenuity license purchases will go toward funding the non-profit’s many other initiatives.
“Abbott House has so many different programs, which is even better because it really gets down to helping that kid understand that whatever they went through wasn’t their fault,” Waters said.
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Eric Klooz, executive director of the Abbott House, said the raffle is a great opportunity for both the children he serves and for donors.
Though raffle tickets are available for purchase now, Klooz said the Abbott House is offering a $10,000 match for any tickets purchased on Giving Tuesday — which comes on Nov. 30, the last day to purchase tickets.
Anyone interested in purchasing a raffle ticket, or seeing what items are being raffled, can contact an Abbott House board member, call the Abbott House offices or visit their website . Raffle winners will be announced Dec. 1.
