TYLA Generation Generosity

TYLA Partners With Houston Bar Association on Drive to Benefit Foster Care Youth

Do you remember moving into your first apartment? For many young people, this move included a raid of their parents’ home for unused furniture, pots and pans, blankets, and other household goods. For youth in the Harris County foster-care system, there is often no household assistance for their first independent living situation.

On February 28, volunteers from the Houston Bar Association (HBA) and the Texas Young Lawyers Association (TYLA) worked together to organize and sort donations received from both associations. These donations were then given to the Houston Alumni and Youth (HAY) Center, an organization that provides services and support for youth who are aging out of the Harris County foster-care system.

TYLA volunteers partnered with the HBA as part of TYLA’s “Generation Generosity” program, in which young lawyers from across the state partner with local bar associations on public service projects aimed at highlighting the contributions and volunteer efforts of lawyers in the community. Eleven volunteers, including Rebekah Brooker, TYLA president-elect, and Patrice Childress, TYLA director sorted mounds of clothing by size and sex before folding, counting, boxing, and labeling them. They also sorted and counted toiletries and household cleaning supplies. In addition to all of the items donated through the HBA’s HAY Center drive, the HBA Juvenile Law Section donated $5,000. Individual members also made cash donations, bringing the total to $6,975. The money will be used to purchase additional items that the HAY Center has identified as being in high demand, such as non-perishable food and toiletries. Through the donations provided to the HAY Center, young people aging out of the foster-care system can fulfill their basic household needs and receive kitchenware, non-perishable food, toiletries, household cleaning supplies, bedding, and a warm blanket.

“The HBA truly appreciates the time and commitment from the TYLA with our HAY Center drive,” said David Chaumette, president of the Houston Bar Association. “TYLA has always been a leader in the bar’s public service efforts, and we were glad to have their help as we worked to improve the lives of our city’s youth."

For four years, the HBA has partnered with the HAY Center through collection drives, assistance with holiday parties, and providing legal education programs for youth and HAY Center staff, in order to support youth aging out of the foster-care system.

For more information, please contact Tara Shockley, 713-759-1133.

Patrice Childress, an associate with Beck Redden LLP and a director of TYLA, sorts clothing at the HAY Center.

Kim Hoesl and Christie Cardon, two of the co-chairs for the HAY Center drive.