There's no place like home – especially when it's the first place of your own as you're embarking into adulthood.
The New England Patriots, in partnership with Bob's Discount Furniture and Foster Forward, set out Wednesday to ensure three young adults aging out of foster care got to have that experience.
"We're fortunate to be here today to help a couple of foster kids move into their first place," said quarterback Jacoby Brissett at the community event in East Providence to celebrate Foster Care Awareness Month.
"I know how exciting that was for me when I was coming into adulthood so I can only imagine what it's like for them. It's exciting helping them unpack and move in so it was a great event."
Brissett, along with New England teammates Antonio Gibson, Austin Hooper, Kevin Harris, Tyrone Wheatley Jr., and Nathan Rourke, joined the Patriots Foundation in unveiling the new apartments and helping the tenants move in and make the units their own.
Each of the three young adults benefiting from this collaboration worked with Bob's Discount Furniture to choose their furniture before moving into the Residences at Riverside Square affordable housing development. The ONE Neighborhood Builders development includes 16 new-construction apartments with three units reserved for these young adults.
All of this was made possible by Foster Forward, whose mission is to empower the lives of individuals impacted by foster care. The organization provides an integrated suite of programming for young adults transitioning out of foster care and into adulthood, including but not limited to housing support, financial literacy and asset building, career exploration and workforce development, therapy and wellness, and mentoring.
