This Saturday April 27, 2013 is the 3rd annual Walk A Mile in My Shoes event promoting awareness and response to the 9,000+ children in foster care in Oklahoma.

The Director of Walk A Mile in My Shoes Ladonna Wolfes explains that children go from their home to a shelter and then they are moved again and they usually don’t have a suitcase. Event participants are encouraged to bring a new or used suitcase to the event and walk with the suitcase symbolic of the children’s multiple moves. These suitcases can be donated for the children at the Laura Dester Shelter. Leslie Beyer with DHS says that last year over 1,000 children came through the Laura Dester Shelter. Another way to care for the practical needs of the children is to donate financially on the Walk A Mile in My Shoes website. These donations are used to provide new clothing, pajamas, shoes, books or personal care items for Oklahoma children in foster care through Citizens Caring For Children.

The Walk is at the Laura Dester Shelter (7318 E. Pine Street, Tulsa) Saturday April 27th from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. It is a family friendly one mile walk. Participation is free. A simple registration form is on their website: walkamilefostercareevent.com

Wolfes says there are three ways people can help children in foster care. One way is by praying for the children - at the walk there will be prayer cards with the name and age of each child in OK DHS custody. Another way to help is by volunteering - there will also be several volunteer agencies at the walk with information about how to volunteer to help children in foster care. A third way to help is by becoming a foster home - OK DHS will be there to give information on how to become a foster family.