The Help A Child Smile Foundation is dedicated to bringing smiles to the faces of children living in foster care facilities throughout Bergen County, New Jersey. The children living in these facilities have no place to call home; they are victims of abuse, neglect and/or abandonment.
For several years now, New Jersey has been struggling to repair its inadequate child welfare system, and, although there has been some advancement, there is still much work to be done. The Help A Child Smile Foundation is committed to the goal of increasing awareness of the desperate needs of these children, as well as to raising funds that provide them with fun and educational opportunities and a chance to enjoy life.
We do this by providing these children with an annual “Field Day” – a fun-filled day where kids can just be kids and enjoy themselves by participating in an array of activities–playing games, competing in sports, and meeting positive role models– and enjoying fun “kid food”, like hot dogs, ice cream and cotton candy.
Additionally, we strive to provide the children with other opportunities such as field trips and summer camp, educational scholarships, and positive role models who help boost their self-esteem and provide the much-needed feeling of optimism that can help guide a struggling child on the road to a bright future.
The Help A Child Smile Foundation’s driving committment is fueled by the belief that EVERY CHILD COUNTS, and we are committed to making a difference in each of their lives.
The Help a Child Smile Foundation was founded in 2006 by Edgewater, New Jersey by Councilwoman Maureen Holtje.
Years before creating the Help a Child Smile Foundation, Councilwoman Holtje and her husband, Terry, a member of the Fort Lee Fire Department, were frequent visitors to the Holley Canter, a foster care home in Hackensack, NJ.
Each year, at Christmas-time, Councilwoman Holtje and Terry would dress up as Mr. and Mrs. Claus, and, accompanied by the Fort Lee Ladder Company #1, they visited the children in the Holley Center and distributed presents and holiday cheer.
When Ms. Holtje became a Councilwoman in Edgewater, she utilized her ties in the community to organize a Field Day for the children of the Holley House. Other volunteers from the Holley House were eager to help, and the event drew interest from the local community, as well as State and Local officials.
It was apparent that the community was eager to help the children, so Councilwoman Holtje decided to create a foundation for that purpose. She established a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and the first of many “Field Days” was born in August of 2006.
The future looks very bright for children in foster care in NJ. Plans for an annual “Field Day” have already been completed, and several foster care agencies, in addition to the Holley House have signed on to participate in Councilwoman Holtje’s annual “Field Day”.
Plans for additional fund-raising events are on-going.
With this web-site as a start, we are striving to reach out to the community at large, as well as individuals throughout the State and U.S., for volunteers and donations that will enable our foundation to grow and offer more Field Days and other fun activities to the children in foster care.