[ real wv ]
Savannah’s
Closet
CATHY BONNSTETTER
Boutique Offers
Special Shopping
Experience for
Kids in Foster Care
Amber True and Jessica
Cummings both had a 360-
degree view of the world of
foster care through their expe-
riences as Court Appointed
Special Advocates (CASA)
when they opened Savannah’s Closet—a boutique run on
charity and love—in 2018.
The closet serves area foster children referred to them by
Jackson County Schools and Jackson County Department of
Health & Human Resources (DHHR) staff. Once a child is
referred to the nonprofit, the two women quickly schedule a
private shopping appointment. Every child leaves Savannah’s
Closet with clothes, shoes, toiletries and books all packed in
a suitcase or backpack.
True and Cummings, along with their 11-member board of
directors, have two goals for Savannah’s Closet: to serve every
child who needs them and to never have a child leave a foster
placement with their belongings in a trash bag. Both women
have seen far too much of that.
“When Amber and I were with CASA, so many children
carried their belongings around in trash bags,” says Cummings,
board president for Savannah’s Closet. “I went to one foster home
where the children’s clothing bags were moldy and filled with
fleas. That was all those children owned in this world.”
Children shop at Savannah’s Closet at no cost, and they
leave with vital necessities and a healthy dose of self-worth.
“We want the children to choose clothes that fit their
personalities so they will have some dignity restored to their
lives,” says True, the program director. “All kids deserve to
have the feelings of dignity and self-confidence we are trying
to give to them.”
Although the nonprofit serves children from infancy through
high school, True says that when she envisioned Savannah’s
Closet, which she named for a young girl she met through
CASA, she had teens in mind because they are the ones who
tend to be moved a lot, and she has seen the wear and tear on
their spirits.
“A lot of times teens come into the shop with a chip on their
shoulder, but when they see the brand-new or like-new stylish
clothing available, you can see them open up and bloom as
they pick their clothes,” she says. “By the time they are done,
they are smiling. They leave looking like a load has been taken
off their shoulders.”
According to Cummings, the annual clothing allotment and
monthly stipend provided by the state do not go far enough to
take care of everything growing children need.
“There are foster parents out there who are superheroes,”
says Cummings. “They take these children in, love them and
provide for them, but it is a large expense, especially when you
take a sibling group into your home.”
As of November 25, 2019, 340 children had shopped at
Savannah’s Closet, exceeding the nonprofit’s 2019 goal.
“I had a five-year plan to get this place running, and we were
up and running in less than a year,” says True. “God opened
up every door available in a big way.”
The nonprofit runs on grants, fundraisers and private
donations with help from the Jackson County Community
Foundation. The biggest challenge is finding money to keep
the lights on and the rent paid.
As of December 2019, 7,046 children in the state were in
some sort of foster care, according to the West Virginia DHHR.
However, the enthusiasm of these two women is bigger than
that daunting number.
“We are a group of people that does not shy away from
ambitious goals. We jump in with both feet,” says Cummings.
“We want to continue to be a force for good and inspire other
people to change a problem when they see it.”
WWW.WVEXECUTIVE.COM
WINTER 2020
89