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 2023 reACHYou’re Sharing Hope this Holiday Season!

VALISSA TURNS ‘WEEK OF CARING’ INTO Years of ServiceI also hope you won’t miss an amazing opportunity to DOUBLE your impact for children, young adults and families. Until December 31, a generous, anonymous donor has offered to match all gifts to ACH, up to $50,000! Thank you for your commitment to protecting children and preserving families. Wishing you and yours the happiest of holidays.Gratefully ,Wayne Carson, Ph.D.Chief Executive OfficerBoard of DirectorsAnna Alvarado, SecretaryToby Ardoyno Sarah BennettHenry Borbolla Linda Christie Katie Ciccarino Delynn Crofford Tom Harris Tim Harvard Farah LawlerChris Mesa Karen MorganLynn NewmanMike ParksSavannah PetronisAlan ShipmanSara VargasKyle Whitaker, Chair Foundation Board MembersRickey BrantleyLinda ChristieChad ClineBob FergusonMelinda JohnstonTruitt KimbroughJaneen LamkinFred Moore, Chair Peter PhilpottCommunity Ambassador Advisory CouncilMargaret AugustatKaren BarlowAlysa DennettVivian FergusonMissy JohnsKelly KellerSandi KennedyBarry KingCindy LevelJudy MayoSusan RoseSuzanne TuckerLindy WilliamsDear Friend,I couldn't be more grateful for you and other kind-hearted supporters this holiday season. Your generosity makes it possible for children and youth to experience the true joy and magic of this special time of year. Over the course of a year, your support of ACH helped more than 29,000 children, youth and families through vital ACH programs and services including crisis intervention, foster care and adoption, family and residential services.Now, as the new year approaches, I remain confident in our unparalleled partnership to help make sure every child is safe, loved and supported. In this holiday edition of reACH, I hope you’ll enjoy reading about a local family who has directly benefitted from your generosity.page 2training to learn the best way to care for Levi’s specific needs.Lane says Levi was fearful of being left alone and had difficulty calming down when feeling overwhelmed or upset. Mike and Lane were committed to reassuring Levi that he was in a safe environment where he could fully express himself.As first-time adoptive parents, Mike and Lane wanted to be sure they were best prepared to support their son, Levi. When the couple felt unsure about navigating his big emotions, they were grateful to have friends like you to help.Thanks to your partnership, the couple received Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®) "If you could make a positive difference in one person’s life, would you do it?" Those are the words of Valissa Armstrong, and it’s with that passion that she serves as a volunteer and also encourages anyone she meets to support children and families through ACH.Valissa and her husband have five children and were dedicated foster parents for 16 years. At the same time Valissa and her husband were serving as foster parents through ACH, she worked at Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and helped the company partner with ACH for a "Week of Caring" volunteer event."I love that ACH is community-based and has opportunities for companies or individuals to volunteer," Valissa says.Valissa enjoyed her first experience volunteering with ACH so much that she gathered a small group of people to serve every year during the holidays. YOU HELP MAKE FAMILIES WHOLEOur Mission PROTECTING CHILDREN. PRESERVING FAMILIES. SINCE 1915."It's really about you and your child against that hard time and not you against your child," Lane says.Through TBRI, Mike and Lane say they learned empowering practices to use at home and guide Levi toward healthier emotions and communication with them and his big sister, Madeline.Now, Lane and Mike focus on deescalating situations involving Levi’s behavior by responding in a calm, communicative and understanding way.“The best thing that I could do is calm myself down so that as he [Levi] is working on his own regulation — when he's ready — he can come and borrow calm from me,” Lane says.(Continued on p.4...)Together, the group organizes and wraps gifts, helps case workers shop for presents for children and youth and helps out wherever else they might be needed."I don’t see a stopping point when it comes to working with ACH as a volunteer," Valissa says. "I only see more opportunities to share my experience with the hopes that others will see the joy of giving back."If you are interested in volunteering, contact volunteers@ACHservices.org."Thanks for all you have given us. He is the best gift ever."

VALISSA TURNS ‘WEEK OF CARING’ INTO Years of ServiceI also hope you won’t miss an amazing opportunity to DOUBLE your impact for children, young adults and families. Until December 31, a generous, anonymous donor has offered to match all gifts to ACH, up to $50,000! Thank you for your commitment to protecting children and preserving families. Wishing you and yours the happiest of holidays.Gratefully ,Wayne Carson, Ph.D.Chief Executive OfficerBoard of DirectorsAnna Alvarado, SecretaryToby Ardoyno Sarah BennettHenry Borbolla Linda Christie Katie Ciccarino Delynn Crofford Tom Harris Tim Harvard Farah LawlerChris Mesa Karen MorganLynn NewmanMike ParksSavannah PetronisAlan ShipmanSara VargasKyle Whitaker, Chair Foundation Board MembersRickey BrantleyLinda ChristieChad ClineBob FergusonMelinda JohnstonTruitt KimbroughJaneen LamkinFred Moore, Chair Peter PhilpottCommunity Ambassador Advisory CouncilMargaret AugustatKaren BarlowAlysa DennettVivian FergusonMissy JohnsKelly KellerSandi KennedyBarry KingCindy LevelJudy MayoSusan RoseSuzanne TuckerLindy WilliamsDear Friend,I couldn't be more grateful for you and other kind-hearted supporters this holiday season. Your generosity makes it possible for children and youth to experience the true joy and magic of this special time of year. Over the course of a year, your support of ACH helped more than 29,000 children, youth and families through vital ACH programs and services including crisis intervention, foster care and adoption, family and residential services.Now, as the new year approaches, I remain confident in our unparalleled partnership to help make sure every child is safe, loved and supported. In this holiday edition of reACH, I hope you’ll enjoy reading about a local family who has directly benefitted from your generosity.page 2training to learn the best way to care for Levi’s specific needs.Lane says Levi was fearful of being left alone and had difficulty calming down when feeling overwhelmed or upset. Mike and Lane were committed to reassuring Levi that he was in a safe environment where he could fully express himself.As first-time adoptive parents, Mike and Lane wanted to be sure they were best prepared to support their son, Levi. When the couple felt unsure about navigating his big emotions, they were grateful to have friends like you to help.Thanks to your partnership, the couple received Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®) "If you could make a positive difference in one person’s life, would you do it?" Those are the words of Valissa Armstrong, and it’s with that passion that she serves as a volunteer and also encourages anyone she meets to support children and families through ACH.Valissa and her husband have five children and were dedicated foster parents for 16 years. At the same time Valissa and her husband were serving as foster parents through ACH, she worked at Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and helped the company partner with ACH for a "Week of Caring" volunteer event."I love that ACH is community-based and has opportunities for companies or individuals to volunteer," Valissa says.Valissa enjoyed her first experience volunteering with ACH so much that she gathered a small group of people to serve every year during the holidays. YOU HELP MAKE FAMILIES WHOLEOur Mission PROTECTING CHILDREN. PRESERVING FAMILIES. SINCE 1915."It's really about you and your child against that hard time and not you against your child," Lane says.Through TBRI, Mike and Lane say they learned empowering practices to use at home and guide Levi toward healthier emotions and communication with them and his big sister, Madeline.Now, Lane and Mike focus on deescalating situations involving Levi’s behavior by responding in a calm, communicative and understanding way.“The best thing that I could do is calm myself down so that as he [Levi] is working on his own regulation — when he's ready — he can come and borrow calm from me,” Lane says.(Continued on p.4...)Together, the group organizes and wraps gifts, helps case workers shop for presents for children and youth and helps out wherever else they might be needed."I don’t see a stopping point when it comes to working with ACH as a volunteer," Valissa says. "I only see more opportunities to share my experience with the hopes that others will see the joy of giving back."If you are interested in volunteering, contact volunteers@ACHservices.org."Thanks for all you have given us. He is the best gift ever."

/ACHchildandfamily /ACHchildfamily ACHservicesorg/achchildandfamilyFour tax-wise donors who boosted their charitable impact with ACH Child and Family ServicesEmily pocketed a tax deduction when she made a year-end cash gift to ACH to help families stay together. Because she itemizes, her contributions allowed her to deduct 100% of her donation. Gifts of cash or short-term gain property are subject to an annual limit of 60% of adjusted gross income. Donors who exceed the yearly deduction limits can carry the deduction forward. William multiplied his tax savings by giving stock he had owned for years that had substantially increased in value. He transferred shares directly to ACH instead of contributing cash and received a full fair market value deduction without having to pay capital gains tax. William says, “Helping kids is my focal mission, but giving low-basis stock multiplies my tax savings.” Eleanor eliminated her income tax bill on her traditional IRA distributions this year and improved the lives of foster kids. She knew that every dollar withdrawn from her IRA triggered ordinary income tax; at 73, she must withdraw some annually. IRA owners over 70½ can use an “IRA Charitable Distribution” and distribute a gift directly to ACH rather than taking the required minimum distribution as taxable income. Eleanor said, “I take the standard tax deduction, so this gives me a secondary tax benefit and a lower gift cost.” Eleanor was inspired to update her beneficiary form and leave her IRA to ACH when she no longer needed it. Tom takes a tax deduction now and plans to give to ACH on his schedule. He said accounting and tax planning can be a headache when making annual gifts to his favorite charities. He created a Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) with a generous charitable gift that worked well for tax timing. He loves the flexibility the DAF gives him for annual charitable giving, his assets can grow tax-free, and he makes gifts on his timeline.To learn more about tax-smart gift ideas, visit ACHserviceslegacy.org(Continued on p.3...)Mike and Lane are overjoyed to see Levi’s shining personality unfold now that he has more space to express his feelings."He is the most loving - the most hilarious kid I know," Lane says of just a few traits of Levi’s character. "I do not get told ‘I love you’ more by anybody than by that kid — and it’s with huge giant hugs."Now that Levi has begun to heal and thrive at home, he’s already choosing to pay it forward to help more children through ACH.Recently, Levi made a special gift of $27.08 to ACH Child and Family Services. The message attached was heartwarming..."This donation is coming from my son Levi, who is six years old. As part of his allowance, he has to donate some money that he receives. He saved for a year and wanted to donate to ACH because of its impact in his life." – LaneMike and Lane openly communicate with Levi and have honest conversations about how he became a permanent member of their family. Levi wanted to show his gratitude for being connected with his forever family."He talks about ACH as ‘the people that helped me when I was a baby’ and so when I asked him where he decided to donate, that's what he chose," Lane says.Lane also volunteers as a mentor in The LIFE Project, helping homeless young adults and older teens aging out of the foster care system become self-sufficient when entering adulthood. Mike and Lane have a special message for ACH supporters like you who bring families together and give children the tools to thrive. “Thanks for all you have given us! He is the best gift ever,” Lane says."He is the most loving - the most hilarious kid I know."