Today we’d like to introduce you to Tammy McGuire. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Tammy McGuire’s experience within the child welfare system expands over the past 43 years. In her early twenties, Tammy mentored a teenage girl within the Foster Care system.
Now married, for over 28 years, she and her husband, John McGuire have four children. In a thirteen (13) years span, their family has nurtured and cared for over sixty-one (61) foster children in their home. Tammy has two adult children from her belly; and on April 5, 2016, she has two from her heart. Adopting their last two foster children.
In 2009, the McGuire family started the Foster Closet Corporation in their own home’s foster room closet. Foster Closet is a 501(c)3 Charity. For 12 years, Foster Closet has been a free resource, helping over 12,000 children. Foster Closet also delivers teens aging out of foster care, with whatever is needed to make their new apartment home.
Tammy also started a foster parent support group. Foster Closet’s Project Faith partners with churches giving support, with monthly “foster parent’s night out”. Foster Closet’s 5 High School Clubs facilitate free tutoring to children in foster care.
Tammy was honored by the Florida Times-Union with the “10 Who Makes a Difference” Award; the 2010 winner of the “Jim Strayer Leadership” Award by the Florida Coalition for Children. And in 2015, Tammy was awarded the prestigious Florida Times Union’s Eve Award. Tammy frequently speaks about her advocate role in the foster care system throughout Northeast Florida and how Foster Closet benefits the children she serves.
She has also been on foster advisory boards, mentored hundreds of foster families, and founded First Coast Foster Adoptive Parent’s Association. Her purpose is brought to life when speaking to local up-and-coming foster parents about her role within the foster care system.
Tammy is a proud grandmother of her 13-year-old ‘heart’ granddaughter, adopted through the foster care system, and her year and half year old, ‘belly’ grandbaby. The McGuire family was created through the handy work of God.
Tammy says, “My most rewarding work, is the honor of serving these precious souls entering foster care every day, either through Foster Closet, or the guidance and support I am able to share. But in the end, I am the one who is blessed to live out my purpose through being the fingerprints of God in the foster care community.”
“Our family began our journey with our two biological children in 2005 and welcomed our first foster children They were a newborn boy and his 13-month-old brother. We found ourselves scrambling to prepare for the boys’ arrival with less than 48 hours’ notice.
We needed everything—from clothes and a crib to a high chair and double stroller—and we were surprised to discover there was nothing available to foster families who need to care for babies, children, and teenagers that come into their homes at a moment’s notice. When the boys left our home (21 months later) for their loving adopted home, I was inspired to create a resource to help other foster families prepare their households.
As I have always said, “I have always advocated in taking the loss of a child leaving our home and creating a purpose in helping other foster families through their journey.” Knowing that there is a need to help other foster families better their environments for children in their care, I began my work in the foster care community in northeast FL. ”
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It was always hard to begin the task of starting Foster Closet, due to the fact there had never been a free resource for the foster children in northeast FL.
Learning how to juggle being a wife, mom of 2 from my belly, and fostering up to three children at any given time. We noticed that there was such a great need for our resource, we moved 6 times in 9 months before landing in an Atlantic Beach storefront. While in Atlantic beach, we needed to raise funds to sustain our new space and found our need to be self-sufficient.
While working diligently to support the foster parents, Family Support Services saw our love for the foster care community and our business-like approach to managing Foster Closet and quickly became a partnership with our organization. We are grateful to the Family Support Services’ partnership for the last 11 years. Because of their continued support, we are able to continue to grow, support, and supply the foster caregivers in our area.
We have found being in a volunteer organization has always been our challenge. Volunteers are a pivotal part of our business model. Because of COVID, we have found it hard t have volunteers come into our storefront. Serving our foster children allows our volunteers to keep Foster Closet organized, distribute items to families, and most importantly, ways to connect with the children we serve.
Another difficulty for Foster Closet during COVID has been fundraising. Our last in-person fundraiser was “Fostering the Light of Hope “, on February 29, 2020. We are grateful for the donors, supporters, and volunteers, who helped make this event a wonderful success. And in August we had our first-ever virtual Gala. Although we had a great response, we were not able to raise the amount that we had hoped.
During the last two Christmas’ we have had a difficulty hosting our annual Christmas Parties. We are grateful to Emmaus church of Jacksonville, who opened their facility during this time, for allowing us to host this amazing event. We had to learn how to reinvent how we have our Christmas Party.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Foster Closet enables foster caregivers and children, to “shop for free” for gently-used clothing, shoes, books, toys, baby necessities, furniture, and other items. We provide families with immediate support donated generously by our community. Caregivers are also offered healing and restoration through a monthly Parent’s Night Out as well as Support Groups.
Free tutoring and mentoring through our local high school Foster Closet Clubs. Foster Children entering foster care, receive two birthday gifts, for any child with an upcoming birthday. Foster Closet’s Pathway program helps teens 18 – 23 years old in Extended Foster Care and the Independent Living Program. The Pathway program helps by providing and delivering necessities to start life on their own, including furniture, kitchen supplies, and other household items.
Because of our tremendous donors and financial supporters, Foster Closet and our board, have had the amazing opportunity to give away three cars in 4 1/5 years and this year we will be presenting another one to a young adult who has aged out of foster care.
Founders Tammy and John McGuire were foster parents and advocates for 15 years in Duval County. The McGuire family has cared for over 61 children in their homes. They have two grown biological children and in April 2016 lovingly adopted a brother and sister they were fostering.
The McGuire’s have witnessed firsthand the challenges of the foster world. Tammy has become a foster community advocate and developed a dedicated network of volunteers. In October 2009, Foster Closet became a 501©3, and each year Foster Closet helps over 800 foster children in northeast Florida.
Foster Closet is a nonprofit organization that is volunteer-run and supported by individuals and companies in our community and all proceeds directly benefit children in foster care and the young adults in the Pathway program. Thank you for your time and consideration. It’s donors like you who make what we do possible by investing in these precious lives.
Because of our donors helping with in-kind and financial support to provide new items as well to our shopping center, we are able to help children with the quality items they deserve. We have been able to provide 3 Teens aging out of foster care with a car of their very own. We are excited to say, this year, we were provided another SUV to present to another qualified young adult this coming year!
Tammy and John were approached 4 years ago by Family Support Services, to begin a Foster Adoptive Parent’s Association, so in August 2018, First Coast Foster Adoptive Parent’s Association was created as an LLC. We have helped over 60 families over the years and have recently handed over the Board to some outstanding foster/adoptive parents to run the board.
With that said, Foster Closet still hosts the meetings, as well as the Support Groups that follow the meetings. Foster Closet Cake Club, provides our families with a free birthday cake for any child in their homes.
We have our annual Christmas Party, servicing anywhere between 100-170 children with whatever they want from Santa up to $200 apiece. Thanks to our local and national donors, we are able to grant each child’s wish. We have Santa come and professional photos were taken of each child and their families who are caring for them. It is a wonderful event.
At our annual fundraisers, we have the children we serve as a part of the festivities. We are asking 10-12 children to come to Foster Closet to choose their clothing for the evening, have professional pictures and videos made of each child, sharing how the Foster Closet has touched, served, and made an impact on their lives.
We then share the videos and pictures during our many events, to have the children shine and be in the spotlight, which they deserve!
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
We stepped out by faith, to not only begin the first-ever Foster Closet in our state that is a free nonprofit resource for foster families. This meant, we had to become a 501c3 and fundraise for all our overhead and the needs of children coming into the foster care system.
We found ourselves finding a storefront to grow with the needs we were providing. Finding the overhead cost to cover through fundraising. Lastly, finding the workforce it takes for the volunteers that could manage the intake and distribution of the items we were giving to the children and families we were quickly seeing needed the help.
In 2010, just one and half years after starting Foster Closet, we also began the Pathway Program, helping teens and young adults aging out of the foster care system, with free furniture and small household appliances and delivering it to their new homes. This meant purchasing a truck, finding the space to put the furniture and products for the Independent Living Youth to choose and put on the truck to deliver.
We had to raise more funds for this first big purchase and another leap of faith. We are grateful that this first need was met easily and we began to learn to leap over and over again, learning quickly that the Jacksonville community finds ways to support and lovingly give beyond our expectations.
Tammy believes in taking a moment in foster care, that can be sad, or discouraging and turning it around to be a positive, therapeutic approach. A prime example, is Foster Closet Support Group, after having a teen punch out her belly teen one tragic evening, she thought her foster care journey had ended. The McGuire family was distraught and concerned about continuing as a licensed foster care home.
However, just as Tammy believes in learning, healing, and growing, Tammy started a first-ever foster support group in Jacksonville. Foster Closet Support group is now close to 8 years old and still flourishing through the First Coast Foster Adoptive Parents Association (FCFAPA).
In 2018, John and Tammy took a risk in starting another LLC, First Coast Foster Adoptive Association (FCFAPA) for foster / adoptive families in Northeast Fl. Although the couple doesn’t run the association, they are members and help with hosting the meetings at Foster Closet with childcare. Tammy still facilitates the Foster Closet’s Support Group.
Lastly, we found ours forever home. This meant a larger commitment from our staff, board, and volunteers to find ways to donate. We saw this wonderful facility off of St. Johns Bluff, Rd. and the tremendous gift it would be to our organization. So of course, we were beyond amazed, we were able to purchase the building and give it a new life, with the joy of children entering it to find their own treasurers.
We continue to leap forward into the arms of our donors, we know that the Jacksonville community is so supportive of Foster Closet and the vision we have for the future of our growth, for the children and families we serve.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: ww.w.fostercloset.org
- Instagram: @fosterclosetcorp
- Facebook: @fosterclosetcorp
- Twitter: @FosterCloset
- Youtube: @fostercloset
- Other: TikTok : @fostercloset
Image Credits
Picture of Tammy and John together, and Severine Photography
