“Suitcases for Kids” a big success

After collecting bags of all kinds for foster kids in the region last week, the Portneuf Rotary Club and United Way say they have around 250 bags.

The two groups started the collection after finding out foster kids usually only have a garbage bag to hold all of their belongings. On Tuesday, group members sorted, categorized and cleaned the donated bags.

Kim Carlino, the project team leader, said they were only expecting to get around a hundred bags.

“You can’t imagine the pride you feel in your friends and neighbors when you put a call out for something and the answer isn’t what you’ve asked for— they almost tripled it,” said Carlino.

Besides a bag, foster kids will also be getting an age-appropriate book to call their own.