Free Stuff & Discounts for Foster Parents Listed

Foster parents with their children on a nature walk

To show support and appreciation for foster parents, some organizations provide material, educational, financial, and other types of aid or discounts.

Nonprofit organizations that recognize the efforts of foster parents may offer free clothing and school supplies, as well as tutoring services and grants for summer camps and music lessons. Some charities have even teamed up with local businesses to supply discount cards that can be used at participating locations.

The national organization iFoster has members in every state and offers resources for foster families. State organizations vary in offerings and support programs.

If you don’t see one listed below for your state, try contacting your state’s department of child and family services.

Discounts and Services for Foster Parents

Few businesses promote discounts to foster parents unless they have partnered with a nonprofit organization. These organizations team up with local businesses and retailers to provide discounts and services to foster parents.

Through a nonprofit, you can often find discounts on local attractions like museums, water parks, and zoos; receive aid for medical, dental, and vision-related expenses; gain access to free clothing, toys, and other necessities; find free tutoring programs for your foster child; and sometimes you can even receive grants to pay for big-ticket items like laptops or bicycles.

National Organization

Before we get into state-specific organizations that offer discounts to foster parents, let’s talk about a national organization called iFoster. iFoster is headquartered in California and has members in all 50 states. Its goal is to help foster parents and children alike. You must become a member to access its resources, but membership is free.

iFoster provides:

  • An online resource portal with hundreds of free or deeply discounted resources
  • An online transition-age youth assistant and digital locker
  • A jobs program that trains and supports transition-age youth (age 16 to 24) to earn a competitive, living wage

State Organizations

Many state organizations offer financial support and can provide foster parents with free children’s clothing, shoes, toys, school supplies, and more. Below, we’ve listed organizations that offer some sort of financial respite, whether that’s free clothing or financial aid for medical bills. If there’s nothing listed for your state, reach out to local nonprofit organizations and charities to learn what aid may be available. You can also check out your state’s department of family and child services.

Alaska

  • Facing Foster Care in Alaska focuses on current and former foster-care children between the ages of 15 and 24. The organization raises money for new laptops and collects gently used laptops to be distributed to young people for educational purposes.

Arizona

  • Arizona Friends of Foster Children Foundation provides foster kids opportunities to attend events, extracurricular activities, school field trips, and more. It also offers medical aid and helps young adults afford laptops and other essentials that may help them in college or a career. The group also publishes a directory of organizations that aid foster families.

Colorado

Connecticut

  • The Connecticut Alliance of Foster & Adoptive Families aids foster parents through support groups, a “buddy” system, a 24-hour helpline, and grants. Foster parents can apply for grants to help pay for summer camp, music lessons, dance lessons, and other activities. It also hosts events like “Avenue of Dreams,” which provides foster teens with free prom dresses, shoes, makeup, and accessories.

Georgia

  • The Foster Care Support Foundation provides clothing, school supplies, toys, and infant care items to foster families in need. It also runs events and programs for teens who are in need of role models.

Hawaii

Iowa

  • Families Helping Families of Iowa provides clothing, haircuts (twice a year), school supplies, senior pictures, and new shoes (once per year) to foster children. It also offers tutoring scholarships.

Maine

Michigan

Minnesota

  • Casa Cares Minnesota provides grants for items like bikes, prom attire, senior pictures, and summer camp fees for foster children.

Missouri

  • Ambassadors for Children provides resources such as clothing, coats, eyeglasses, tutoring services, and more to children in need. It helps children who are at risk of entering foster care, as well as those who are in foster care or have returned home after foster care.
  • Cherish Kids provides resources such as informational and financial support to caregivers.

Nebraska

  • The Nebraska Foster and Adoptive Parent Association offers support groups and education for foster parents. It also provides Kits for Kids that are filled with school supplies, toys, and clothing. Scholarships are also available for foster kids who would like to go to college.

New Jersey

New Mexico

  • New Mexico Friends of Foster Children awards scholarships and grant money to children who have been in the foster care system for more than six months. These funds are meant to cover educational expenses after high school.

Oklahoma

Oregon

  • With Love Oregon supplies foster families in the Portland area with free clothing and other necessities for children up to age six. The organization is operated by volunteers and donors.

Rhode Island

  • Foster Forward offers leadership and life skills programs designed to help children and teens be successful. It also has training and informational programs for caregivers. A clothing bank supplies needed items — free of cost — to foster children.

South Dakota

  • East River Foster Parent Network accepts requests for financial assistance and items to help foster parents in supporting a child’s physical, emotional, or social growth during long-term foster care.

Tennessee

Utah

  • Utah Foster Care has a Wishing Well Fund that can be used to pay for different types of lessons (music, dance, karate, etc.), prom attire, sporting equipment, yearbooks, school rings, contact lenses, and even vacations. Its also offers training classes for current and prospective foster parents.

Vermont

Washington

  • Treehouse provides free clothing, shoes, school supplies, and more to foster kids. (Note: Some services have restricted eligibility and are only available in King County.) It also has a list of resources on its website.

West Virginia

  • Foster Adventure allows foster parents to submit wish requests on its website. The charity then works to grant these wishes through fundraising. It also has a Christmas Wallet program, which gifts foster children wallets filled with gift cards to their favorite places.

Wisconsin

State Parks

A few states offer support to foster families by allowing free access to parks statewide.

Florida State Parks: Family Annual Entrance Pass

Oregon State Parks: Special Access Pass

  • Discount: All-access pass to Oregon’s state parks, where foster families can camp for free for up to 14 days
  • Eligibility: Foster parents must be certified through the Oregon Department of Human Services
  • More Information from Oregon State Parks

Washington State Parks: Foster Home Camping Pass

Places That Do Not Offer Discounts for Foster Parents

Unfortunately, unless you work with a nonprofit or charity that has a connection with one of the following businesses, those listed below do not offer discounts for foster families:

  • Goodwill
  • JCPenney
  • Kohl’s
  • Kroger
  • Marcus Theatres
  • Pick ‘n Save
  • Sam’s Club
  • Six Flags Great America
  • Walt Disney Parks and Resorts

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4 comments - Comments are closed.


  • HPM

    Treehouse in Washington State claims to offer services “across Washington State” when in reality it is only accepting applicants in King County – no exceptions. We work in King County but live in a small town, a ferry trip to Seattle, our county is Kitsap – no acceptance. I would strike them as representing Washington as they are only focused within their county limits.

    • First Quarter Finance logo
      First Quarter Finance | Lindsey Desmet

      Hello, HPM! We looked into this and found that Treehouse does require King County residency for many of its services; however, eligibility requirements vary for each service. We have updated our article to include a note about the eligibility restrictions. Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

  • Brandy

    Are there no discounts available in South Dakota?

    • First Quarter Finance logo
      First Quarter Finance | Lindsey Desmet

      Hello, Brandy! iFoster is available nationwide and may be helpful to you. We were also able to find one organization in South Dakota that offers assistance to foster parents, though it doesn’t specifically offer discounts: East River Foster Parent Network. We have added information about this organization to our article.

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