As Barrington flips on its holiday lights, neighbors are being asked to brighten the season for children in foster care. Let It Be Us will collect new, unwrapped toys from 2–7 p.m. on December 10 and 11 at its headquarters, 145 W. Main St. in Barrington, with details posted on the group’s Toy Drive Event Page. For those who can’t shop, the nonprofit will purchase gifts on donors’ behalf through its donation portal. The nonprofit says gifts for older kids and teens are especially helpful, and it also welcomes wrapping paper and bows.

A holiday push — and where the toys go

Let It Be Us leaders say the community typically fills the bins with about 1,500 toys over two days. The items are delivered to Illinois Department of Children & Family Services (DCFS) offices and group homes, where case workers wrap and distribute them to children. The toy list and drop-off instructions are updated on the organization’s Toy Drive Event Page, which also underscores the seasonal need for teen-friendly gifts.

The nonprofit’s adult night out, Candy Cottage for a Cause: Gingerbread Holiday Fundraiser for Foster Care and Adoption, returns on December 4 from 5:30–8 p.m. at Butterfield Country Club in Oak Brook. Tickets are $100 and include hors d’oeuvres and an open bar, with a chef guiding attendees as they build a take-home gingerbread house; ticketing and event details are posted by Let It Be Us. Proceeds benefit the organization’s foster care and adoption work.

Beyond the bows: year-round impact

The holiday drive sits atop a deeper mission. Let It Be Us works on about 500 cases a year and, by the organization’s accounting, makes placements in roughly 25% of those cases — a marker of how often its recruitment and matching efforts help a child find family. Leaders with Let It Be Us describe those outcomes as the result of steady, behind-the-scenes coordination with caseworkers and prospective parents throughout the year.

That work has been expanding. Illinois DCFS awarded Let It Be Us a three-year, $750,000 contract to improve adoption placements statewide, including launching a Heart Gallery adoption listing service and bolstering recruitment and family support, as reported by Shaw Local. Separately, the organization handles roughly 100 adoption and foster-care cases per month, maintains a database of more than 1,200 Illinois foster homes, and operates an emergency foster care program with local partners to meet urgent placement needs, according to the Daily Herald.

What the numbers show

The seasonal generosity lands in a state where need is steady. As of July 31, 2025, approximately 17,090 children and youth were under DCFS custody in Illinois, and about 4,300 children entered foster care in fiscal year 2024, according to Illinois CASA. Federal point-in-time counts show 19,486 Illinois children in foster care on September 30, 2023, data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Child Welfare Outcomes reporting shows, as noted by Child Welfare Outcomes (ACF).

Nationally, the number of children in foster care fell nearly 7% from fiscal year 2022 to 2023 — from about 368,530 to 343,077 — and roughly 527,180 children were involved in foster care at some point during 2023, according to USAFacts. Yet adoptions from foster care have dipped to a multi-decade low, a trend spotlighted by the National Council For Adoption. “It’s important to remember that an increase or decrease in the number of children in foster care should not be our measure of success,” said Ryan Hanlon, president and CEO of National Council For Adoption. National Council For Adoption. The organization’s analysis notes that recent adoption counts are the lowest since 2003, underscoring the urgency of permanency-focused efforts.

How to help

There are a few simple ways to make a difference this season:

  • Drop off new, unwrapped toys at Let It Be Us, 145 W. Main St., Barrington, from 2–7 p.m. on December 10 and 11. Requested items — especially for older kids and teens — plus guidance on donating wrapping paper and bows are posted on the Toy Drive Event Page.
  • Purchase a ticket to the Candy Cottage for a Cause fundraiser on December 4 (5:30–8 p.m.) at Butterfield Country Club in Oak Brook. Tickets are $100 via Let It Be Us.
  • If you can’t attend or shop, contribute online and Let It Be Us will purchase gifts on your behalf through its donation page.

Why it matters here

For Barrington-area families, the Toy Drive is a hands-on way to meet an immediate need while supporting a nonprofit that’s taking on larger, systemic work — from a statewide adoption contract to a growing database of foster homes. State and national numbers show both the breadth of the challenge and the impact of local action; each donated toy winds up in the hands of a child via DCFS offices and group homes, and each fundraiser ticket helps fuel the year-round matching and support that lead to placements.

As the season gets underway, the call is simple: bring a gift, buy a ticket, or give online. The drop-off details are at the Toy Drive Event Page, ticket information is at Candy Cottage for a Cause, and donations can be made anytime at Let It Be Us. Paired with the organization’s expanding capacity and state partnership reported by Shaw Local and the Daily Herald, these small acts add up — the kind of hometown momentum that can carry a child from uncertainty toward family and stability.

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