Jennie Cole, deputy assistant director of Montgomery County Children Services, said over 700 kids are in the agency’s care.
“When they come to visitation, when they come to see our nurse, it’s nice to have something for them to hang onto and to comfort them during a difficult and stressful time,” Cole said.
Kuykendall said the teddy bears provide security to children, adding of Valentine’s Day, “What better day of the year to show how much we care about them?”
Cole said for some kids, the stuffed animals just give them “something to call their own” in a rough time.
“When caseworkers can hand them a teddy bear, something that they can hang onto, sometimes it breaks down that barrier of emotion, and they can start to talk out their feelings,” she said.
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