Why I Give: Carolyn Downham

For children in foster care, meeting with their natural parents is an important time—but it can also be stressful, especially when there is no good place to have a relaxed visit.

Carrier House, part of the Saint Luke’s Hospital Crittenton Children’s Center, helps fill that need. 

Carrier House is simply a regular house located on the Crittenton property. But it’s a lifeline for families, offering a home-like setting where they can cook a meal or play a game together, without the stress and distraction of being in a public place. 

Some foster children need more, however. Saint Luke’s serves more than 500 children in foster care, and a growing percentage of them have sensory disabilities. For them, bright lights or too much noise can be highly disturbing. 

Carolyn Downham, who has chaired the Crittenton board for more than 20 years, began looking for ways to accommodate those children so they felt safe and comfortable while at Carrier House. 

She knew of the work done by Variety KC, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving children with disabilities. 

Variety KC has helped install special accommodations for kids at various venues around the city, such as the zoo, aquarium, and airport. 

“I put two and two together and thought there might be something they could do for our foster kids,” she said. 

She contacted the organization, which confirmed that with just a small facelift, one of the rooms at Carrier House could be converted to a “sensory room,” equipped with a sound machine, a dimmable floor lamp, soothing furnishings, and toys to help relieve stress.

Money was tight, however, since most funding must go to health care and basic needs.

“Anything above and beyond that has to come from outside resources,” she said.

Downham has donated regularly to Crittenton over the years, sometimes directly, other times through charity auctions or the United Way. Now she saw another opportunity.

“Rather than trying to find a bunch of people to come up with this money, I said, ‘I’ll just give it to you.’ I liked this because I knew exactly where the money was going. Being able to see it in action and make that connection is meaningful to me. In my mind it was a small amount,” she said. “But it’s going to have a big impact for these kids.

“I donate to places I’m passionate about,” she added, “and I’m passionate about these kids.”