Sponsors are needed for the Help-A-Child-Smile Foundation’s third annual Field Day this August.
The non-profit organization takes 80 kids from the Holley Center, a foster care home in Hackensack, and provides a barbecue and other events at Veterans Field. Resident Maureen Holtje established it after visiting the Holley Center with her husband’s fire company in Fort Lee.
Holtje and her dressed up as Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus and gave presents out to the kids.
"A lot of fire departments get involved (with local causes)," Holtje said.
But as she noticed what the Center was like she wanted to do more for the kids.
"Just the environment the children live in is just so institutionalized," Holtje said. "The play area isn’t really grass, it’s cement."
She originally wanted to give the kids a barbecue but as she told other people they wanted to get involved and it snowballed.
"It went from just a barbecue to this big event," she said.
Past field days have included a petting zoo, pony rides, karoake, face painting, sports, and food donated by the local Outback Steakhouse.
The foundation also brings in role models to interact with the kids, including a body builder and Bergen County Sheriff Department officers, who brought along horses and motorcycles.
"The Edgewater Police always get involved and take pictures of the kids with Polaroids so that they can give it to them," Holtje said.
She said people or businesses could sponsor things like a petting zoo, a cotton candy machine or ice cream. Past donations have helped the foundation give kids backpacks with school supplies, and shirts and sweatshirts.
"Any kinds of gifts are great to be able to give the kids," she said.
In addition to the field day, the foundation likes to give gifts during Christmas. It also gave the Holley Center $1,500 in gift cards so that the Center was able to get things for kids throughout the year.
The foundation wasn’t able to do a lot of fundraising this year and is hoping to find some more sponsors before the Field Day Aug. 28. Donations are tax deductible because of its non-profit status.
"It’s just a day for them to get outside, run around and have fun before going back to school," Holtje said.
