New Beginning Essentials for Former Foster Youth

In 2025, Citrus Family Care Network (Citrus FCN) and the Out of Foster Foundation (OOFF) were honored to be selected as a Leadership Miami® community project, joining forces with local professionals to launch the New Beginning Essentials initiative: a collaborative effort designed to give former foster youth the stability, comfort, and dignity they deserve as they transition to adulthood.

Every year in Miami-Dade County, dozens of young people age out of foster care, many stepping into their first apartments with few belongings and limited resources. The New Beginning Essentials Kits fill this critical gap by providing household and baby necessities (from bedding and cookware to toiletries and infant supplies) so that each young adult can begin their next chapter feeling supported, seen, and at home.

Through this Leadership Miami partnership, 50 young adults and their children will receive personalized kits assembled with care by volunteers, youth leaders, and members of the Leadership Miami cohort.

This initiative is more than a donation drive- it is a community coming together to ensure that no young adult leaves foster care empty-handed or unseen. Citrus FCN and OOFF plan to create a sustainable model for year-round giving that continues to provide essentials and hope to youth across Miami-Dade.

Your Give Miami Day donation helps us sustain this effort: restocking kits, expanding outreach, and providing ongoing support for young adults forging independent, fulfilling lives after foster care. Together, we can turn every new beginning into a brighter one.