April was Child Abuse Prevention Month and the Albert Lea Exchange Club teamed up with Emily Honsey, a local Thirty-One consultant in Albert Lea. Honsey organized a fundraiser to purchase the Thirty-One backpacks, and the Albert Lea Exchange Club filled them with items for children of different ages who are displaced from their homes due to circumstances in their home. These children are taken to local foster care homes with sometimes nothing but the clothes on their backs, and these items were things these children could take with them to call their own. There were 40 bags, and they have all been distributed to children since they were given to the Freeborn County Foster Care Program in April of this year. Provided

Kathy Huisman and The Exchange Club for Family Unity in Owatonna receive Christmas gifts from Sara Barnes and the Albert Lea Exchange Club for the families that are served by the center in Freeborn County. The Center for Family Unity serves families in five surrounding counties with a parent mentor program, visitation center, safe child exchanges and parenting circles. The Exchange Clubs support these programs. Provided