Big boost for foster closet: AgWest Farm Credit donates $80K to Blackfoot project

BLACKFOOT — The Idaho Foster & Adoptive Parent Association (IDFAPA) has received an $80,000 boost from AgWest Farm Credit to help remodel its new facility, which will house The Village, a foster care closet serving children and families across 16 counties in southeast Idaho.

The Village — a nonprofit organization that provides free clothing and supplies to children and young adults in foster care — first opened its doors at 35 East Pacific Street in Blackfoot in January 2021.

Before that, the group operated out of a storage unit in Idaho Falls, the Blackfoot Food Pantry, and even the home of current IDFAPA director and The Village president Jacque Burt, a former foster parent and adoptive mother.

“As far as I know, this is the only foster care closet in southeast Idaho,” Burt said. “Children who come into care can choose items for themselves, which gives them their voice back. We want to be a kid-friendly place where foster parents and caseworkers can bring children and let them choose what they need.”

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The remodel, which was currently under construction when the AgWest donation came through, will serve as IDFAPA’s headquarters and a community hub, bringing together other nonprofit organizations under one roof.

Burt said the donation came at the perfect time and was an answer to prayer, right when they needed money to install the HVAC systems.

“Most importantly, it will provide a state-of-the-art home for The Village, which offers clothing, shoes, diapers, toys, personal hygiene products, and other essentials for children starting at birth and all the way to early adulthood to age 23,” Burt said.

For teens transitioning into adulthood, The Village assembles independent living kits stocked with everyday items like pots and pans, brooms, bed sheets, and blankets—essentials for those heading to college or living on their own.

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“We are so grateful to AgWest for caring for our foster children,” Burt said. “This extremely generous donation brings us closer to finishing our facility and being able to welcome children into it. We can never thank AgWest and its team enough for choosing our organization and supporting the work we do.”

AgWest Farm Credit, an agricultural lending cooperative with more than a century of experience supporting farmers, ranchers, and rural communities, made the donation through its grant program, which invests in projects designed to strengthen local communities.

We give back 1 percent of our net income to the communities where our customers work and live in places we see a need,” said Steve Smith, senior vice-president of AgWest Farm Credit.

Smith said AgWest Farm Credit also donated to $50,000 to Malad High School, $50,000 to Caribou County Fairgrounds and $26,000 to Butte County for a new fairground building.

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Thanks to the donation, The Village is estimated to be complete by the end of the year or early in the new year. The facility will also host classes and support programs for foster families and youth in care.

“We purposely chose Blackfoot for The Village because it’s centrally located for what we do,” said Burt. “This is such a giving community. There are amazing things that happen here and lives are changed for the better.”

For more information about IDFAPA and The Village—or to learn how to get involved—visit IDFAPA.org

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