Funded Partner Spotlight: Packs of Love Foundation
Inspired by gaps she saw while working in the foster care system, Sapheria Emani Samuels founded Packs of Love Foundation in 2022 and established the group as an official nonprofit in 2023.
Since its inception, Packs of Love has provided more than 420 duffle bags of personal hygiene products like shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant and more to local group homes serving foster care youth. Thanks to a 2025 capacity-building from the Foundation, offered in collaboration with Orlando Health Bayfront Hospital, the group is working to expand and deepen its work in the community.
Next month, Packs of Love will begin offering life skills classes for a local group home, focusing on topics like stress reduction and financial literacy. To help teenagers in the foster care system recover a sense of normalcy, the organization is also hoping to help two local high school seniors living in a group home take part in experiences like prom, senior pictures, and more.
“We’re super excited about all of this,” said Emani Samuels, who serves part-time as the organization’s only employee. “Each year, we are accomplishing a different goal. 2024 was all about getting bags of hygiene products to the teenagers and kids who need them. Last year, we started connecting more with our community to figure out what else we could offer. And this year we’re focusing on metrics and sustaining our work for years to come.”
With Foundation funding, the group will conduct two focus groups this year with foster care youth and system employees to better target their efforts to local needs. They’ll also redo their website, expand marketing and communications efforts with flyers and other materials, offer volunteer and board development trainings, and craft an organization strategic plan to guide their work for the coming years.
“Going through the Core Capacity Assessment process with the Nonprofit Leadership Center as part of our grant really highlighted our strengths as well as areas we need to work on,” Emani Samuels said. “It was very, very beneficial for us. Our facilitator was so detailed and thorough. It really helped us think about sustainability for the future.”
Packs of Love is currently looking for board members with an interest in or experience with the foster care system. Email inspire@packsoflovefoundation.org to learn more.