ST. LOUIS — For mother-of-four Laura Storm, it started with a simple question with a complicated answer: How do I teach my kids to be better people?
"For years we're having these conversations about how we could teach our kids to serve and how we can teach our kids to share God's love with the community," said Storm.
The answer turned out to be the South County Foster Closet, also know as Storm's basement, overflowing with children's clothing and supplies, from birth to teens.
"What if we start collecting shoes and clothes for kids in foster care and pass those along to foster families for free?"
With the help of friends like Leslie Westbrook and Beth Porter, they sort, fold, categorize and pack the avalanche of donations from the community.
"None of us knew a single foster parent in the St. Louis area," said Storm, "but we just felt like God was just leading us towards this idea and on this path. So, it just kind of exploded. I mean, just from that first day asking people for donations, just the people that we knew."
In a year's time, the South County Foster Closet has outgrown Storm's basement. While she seeks non-profit status for the organization, she's hoping to find another South County location so the foster closet can serve more people.
"If we had a space where families could come and choose their own items, especially the older children, you know, giving them opportunity to choose their own clothes would be huge. So we're looking for around a thousand square feet or more that would have an entrance where families could come in, shop, of course, free of charge," said Storm.
For more information about the South County Foster Closet, click here.