Ruston girls giving special gifts to children in foster care

A Ruston girls’ club is helping other kids through tough times.

The Crown Club is a club for high school girls to help others.

"A lot of young ladies here do service so they start to give back to their communities," club advisor Vanessa Brown says.

The girls say it's all about giving back and getting the chance to help kids just like them.

"We've done a lot of projects and a lot of those projects are with children and that's really what warms our hearts," club member Mary Julia Klug says.

Right now they're helping kids in foster care.

"Nobody ever stops to think about the kids that are displaced from their homes? Or what about the ones that feel like they don’t have anything in the world because they're being uprooted from their situation?" Brown says.

So they're giving the kids hygiene essentials and even a little bit of fun.

Crown Club chair Calysta Manning says, "We have Kleenex, soap, shampoos, toothbrushes, toothpaste. We even have fidget spinners that somebody donated."

Club leaders say they chose this project because of the high number of kids in foster care in Lincoln Parish.

"Many of them only come with the clothes on their back and so letting them know that things will be okay, here's a fresh start," Brown says.

The girls say it's their chance to send a message to these kids - a message of love.

"I hope they know that even though they're going to a new environment there are people out there that still care about them and they’re really loved,” club member Sena Tamakloe says. “Even though they don’t know us and they may never meet us we still love them just for who they are."

Klug adds, "It gives them something to call their own and I think that's really special."

The Crown Club is a Junior Auxiliary club of Ruston and it's open to high school girls. If you're interested in joining, you can go to their Facebook page.