L.A. non-profit gives former foster youth designer digs to make them feel more at home in new apartments

From the Imprint — About 10 years ago, Los Angeles residents Georgie Smith and Melissa Goddard wanted to expand their family. They considered the options for having their own biological child, but also set out to learn all they could about adoption and foster care.

While volunteering with foster youth, the couple met Barry, a young man in his early 20s transitioning out of Los Angeles’ state care. He had just secured his first apartment with a Section 8 voucher and asked if they could help him move. He had few belongings and the rental apartment itself was barren — not even a fridge or stove.

“I saw him living on the floor,” Smith said. “I was just like, ‘No, this can’t be.’”

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So the couple turned to social media, asking for the types of items parents send children off to first apartments with: a table and chairs, a softly used couch, kitchen items and wall hangings. Donations poured in, friends lent trucks, and Barry’s empty apartment became a home.

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