A Record-Breaking Pull for Kids!

On Saturday, April 29, Child Advocates hosted their annual Pull for Kids Classic. This signature fundraising event honored longtime supporters Traci and Derrick Jensen along with Quanta Services for their dedication to bringing Child Advocates’ mission to life – giving a voice to Houston’s foster children and guiding them into a safe home.

 

The event kicked off Saturday morning with a sporting clays tournament at American Shooting Centers. Teams had the opportunity to compete together on three different courses. This year, Child Advocates raffled off a Beretta shotgun donated by American Shooting Centers and a Yeti cooler. The proceeds went toward providing funds to give more advocates to Houston’s abused and neglected children.

 

On Saturday evening, Bayou City Event Center was packed with 450 guests dressed in their finest blues to close out Child Abuse Prevention and Awareness Month with a “Paint the Town Blue” themed evening party. The evening featured silent, big board and live auctions as well as a Whiskey Pull and Wine Pull, where guests had the opportunity to take home bottles chosen at random. The live auction included a whiskey barrel painted by artist Crystal Nobles with a trip to Devils River Whiskey distillery, a one-week getaway to San Miguel, a package of premium tickets to Astros, Texans, Rockets and Dynamo games, an ocean-front stay in Costa Rica, chef’s dinner at Steak 48 and an Argentinian red stag hunt. The live auction brought in $58,000, and the Sponsor a Child portion of the evening brought in $200,000 for Child Advocates’ mission.

 

After dinner was served, the program began with touching words from event honorees Traci and Derrick Jensen. Traci then introduced a video sharing the story of a young boy, Cooper, and his advocate Jana. Cooper came into foster care only days after he was born because he had very high levels of heroin and several other opioids in his body. His foster parents shared their gratitude for Jana because she uncovered more background about the biological parents and their true intentions. Jana informed the court that she found it to be in Cooper’s best interests to be adopted by his foster parents. Now, Cooper has found a safe, forever home and is a vibrant, spunky toddler who overcame all his obstacles.

 

By the night’s end, the 2023 Pull for Kids Classic raised over $850,000, a record-breaking amount! A special thanks to the generous support of title sponsor Quanta Services and Traci and Derrick Jensen who helped make this year’s event a record breaking one. Continued thanks to event chairs Donette and Jeff Manley, and tournament chair Dwyane Hyzak for their dedication and support to the 31^st annual Pull for Kids Classic.

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Child Advocates mobilizes court appointed advocates to break the vicious cycle of child abuse. We speak up for abused children who are lost in the system and guide them into safe environments where they can thrive.

 

Our advocates are at the heart of Child Advocates' mission. They are shining examples of ordinary individuals making an extraordinary impact in the lives of abused and neglected children of Harris County. Our 30-hour training course is offered several times a year and prepares our volunteers for this incredible experience. All potential volunteers must go through this training, interviews, and thorough background checks including Local Criminal, National Criminal, CPS and National Sex Offender checks.