CPI Welcomes a New Team Member!

Dear Care Package Inbound Family,

First and foremost, we want to give a heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you for following our journey and supporting our mission. Your encouragement has fueled some truly amazing growth, and we couldn’t do it without you.

At Care Package Inbound (CPI), our mission is simple but powerful: to impact every child and teen in foster care. We are dedicated to bringing hope to those who need it most, providing essential items that offer comfort and dignity in what can be an incredibly uncertain time. When a child enters foster care, it can feel overwhelming, but together, we are making a real difference.

To keep you connected to the incredible stories, events, and opportunities happening at CPI, we knew we needed someone who could help share it all with you. That’s why we’re thrilled to welcome Austin Fitzgerald to our team! He’ll be helping us keep you in the loop and will introduce himself in his own words below.

Please join us in giving him a warm welcome!

_____________________________________________________________________

Hello everyone,

My name is Austin Fitzgerald and it is my great pleasure to join the Care Package Inbound team writing their monthly newsletters. I will also be an engaging presence letting you all know what is happening at their monthly events. Being born with a disability (Spina Bifida), I have always felt that God has given me a heart for the voiceless and people wanting a second chance. A bible verse that has stuck with me through my life is 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 “But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

I was first drawn to Care Package Inbound back in 2021 coming off of my first internship with 360 Sports. Coming from a military family and history in which two past grandparents, two family friends (one dying in action), as well as my brother have served, the mission of CPI was very near and dear to my heart. In the same way those in the military receive care packages so they can continue to focus on protecting us either here in the homeland or abroad, I thought it was unique to give kids “care package” bags, so they can continue to live dignified lives as they work their way in and through the foster care system. I am hoping through CPI, we will be able to take this burden off their backs, so they can focus on being successful just like any child in America and the rest of the world should be able to.

In my previous career, I have worked for both Catholic Charities of Kansas City-Saint Joseph and MindVue. At CCKCSJ, I was a AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteer in Service to America) as a Communications Assistant. It was a very unique opportunity as each day I got a window into seeing how the various departments of the agency worked independently and also together whether it was the Welcome Center, Children and Family, Veteran’s, Housing, Food Pantry, and Employment Services departments, as well as their newly created Deaf & Disability and Mental Health ministries. Each day, I grew to be the point of contact for any concerns the public had as well as post all our content on social media. Another main part of my job was creating and maintaining the monthly Parish Bulletins. Whether it was promoting their Outpace Poverty 5K run, their Amazon Smile wishlist, other programs they supported such as their Cars4KC as well as their Social Butterflies programs. I would also highlight any social media campaigns they would do for their Catholic Charities Emergency Assistance Fund, Veterans Appeal, and End of the Year Donation Drive. Lastly, I would also include news about their new Serve and Lift Center and in March and April, discuss ways to get involved with their annual Celebration of Hope Gala (now Ball) coming up. I also wrote various newsletters for the Deaf and Disability department, Mobile Food pantry, Cars4KC program, as well as the Outpace Poverty 5K.

At MindVue, I established a social media calendar focusing on a specific mindset skill each week whether it was grit, resilience, intrinsic motivation etc. Understanding different facets of these skills helped people understand how to develop and sharpen them in whatever circumstance good or bad they found themselves in. Lastly, I also created two articles related to having a growth mindset as well as how intrinsic motivation is created.

I cannot wait to learn more and grow and share with all of you the wonderful impact Care Package Inbound is making in Kansas City, the United States and hopefully all across the world.

Thankful for the opportunity,

Austin Fitzgerald

_____________________________________________________________________

With gratitude, The Care Package Inbound Team

If you would like to partner with us or learn more about how you can help, please don’t hesitate to reach out! You can contact us directly at info@carepackageinbound.com or visit our website at www.carepackageinbound.com.